Hong Kong is reportedly set to approve first spot Bitcoin ETF by mid-April

Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission is reportedly ready to approve the spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund, signaling a major breakthrough in the city’s crypto market.

Hong Kong is gearing up to approve the first batch of spot Bitcoin ETFs in the region by Apr. 15, Tencent News has learned, citing multiple sources close to the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission. The report says the Hong Kong regulator initially planned to approve only four spot Bitcoin ETFs in the first batch.

However, the latest changes revealed that at least two applications didn’t meet the requirements for crypto asset management in Hong Kong. The timing and recipients of permission to offer the first spot Bitcoin ETFs in the region remain uncertain.

Currently, several Hong Kong-based companies and proxies from mainland China have signaled their interest in launching spot crypto exchange-traded funds. China Southern Fund as well as Harvest Fund, Jiashi Fund, Huaxia Fund, and Southern Fund have submitted applications via their Hong Kong arms and are awaiting regulatory approval.

Once the Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong approves the first batch of spot Bitcoin ETFs, the Hong Kong Stock Exchange will need about two weeks to prepare for product listing and other matters.

The potential approval of spot Bitcoin ETFs in Hong Kong could follow three months after the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s approval of the first batch of spot Bitcoin ETFs in the U.S. So far, the top 10 spot Bitcoin ETFs allocated around $57 billion under the management, with the top three accounting for over 88%.