Hong Kong’s biggest virtual bank, ZA Bank, has stated its intentions to venture into the region’s thriving crypto sector. According to a report by Bloomberg, ZA Bank plans to offer crypto-to-fiat conversion and account services as Hong Kong is fast becoming a major attraction site in the Web3 world.
This development was revealed by ZA’s CEO, Ronald Lu, while speaking at Hong Kong’s Web3 festival earlier this week. According to Lu, the virtual-only bank will offer crypto-to-fiat currency conversion over licensed crypto exchanges.
Therefore, ZA Bank will be acting as a settlement bank for individuals with assets on various trading platforms who are looking to withdraw fiat currency, albeit only the Hong Kong Dollar, U.S. Dollar and Chinese Yuan.
As of now, ZA Bank has already established partnerships with two exchanges, – Hashkey and OSL, with intentions to expand this crypto conversion service as more trading platforms are authorized to operate in the Chinese special administrative region.
ZA Bank To Open Accounts For Web3 Businesses
Established in 2018, ZA Bank is widely regarded as the first and largest virtual-only bank in Hong Kong. According to market data, ZA caters to over 50% of virtual bank customers in Hong Kong while holding total assets worth over $760 million.
In addition to its crypto-to-fiat conversion service, ZA’s CEO also revealed the online bank will be opening accounts for Web3 startups alongside small and medium size blockchain businesses.
“As Hong Kong is stepping up efforts to cultivate a web3-friendly environment, ZA Bank’s online account opening for Web3 startups represents a major step forward in the integration of traditional banking services with the web3 world,” said Lu.
According to Bloomberg’s report, over 100 companies are currently using this service following testing in a regulatory sandbox.
Hong Kong Maintains Push Into The Cryptoverse
In recent times, the region of Hong Kong has been known for its crypto-friendly policies attracting key players in the blockchain space from over the world.
Total crypto market valued at $1.2 Trillion | Source: TOTAL chart on Tradingview.com
Despite the recent troubles which have plagued the $1 trillion crypto industry, the Hong Kong government has maintained its efforts in transforming the Chinese special administrative state into a global crypto hub.
Hong Kong’s positive reception towards the crypto world has become highly important, especially with the growing regulatory crackdown cases in the U.S. and the ever-present blanket crypto ban in mainland China.
In the latest development, the state government established a Web3 Association on April 11, aimed at driving the sustainable development of Web3 in Hong Kong.
According to a report by a local news agency, the newly established Web3 association is made up of several key industry stakeholders as well as members of the state legislative council.
The report also noted that the association will be employing various strategies to achieve its goal, including the monetization of data, tokenization of assets and promotion of digitization to traditional businesses and industries.
