Hong Kong’s financial sector set to lead APAC tokenisation: KPMG

The city is attracting mainland asset holders looking to tokenise their holdings.

Hong Kong is poised to lead the Asia Pacific region in tokenisation, with immediate use cases attracting mainland Chinese asset owners, said KPMG.

“We are seeing significant interest from mainland asset owners looking to tokenise traditionally illiquid holdings—infrastructure projects, real estate, renewable energy installations—through Hong Kong channels,” KPMG said in its “Hong Kong Asset Management and Private Equity Outlook” report published in July 2026.

Recent launches of tokenised products have also demonstrated Hong Kong’s ability to bring institutional-grade digital assets to the market, KPMG said.

In a separate report, KPMG experts advised banks in Hong Kong to take time to build digital asset capability.

Business cases for banks, even those with a stablecoin regime like in Hong Kong, are still emerging, KPMG had said in the “Hong Kong Banking Report 2026.”

Many banks both in the city and regional banks remain in wait-and-see mode, the report said.

Earlier in 2026, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) granted two stablecoin licenses to HSBC and a joint venture backed by Standard Chartered Hong Kong. 

HKMA chief executive Eddie Yue earlier said that regulated issuance of stablecoins could “address pain points in financial and economic activities” whilst supporting risk management and user protection.

Analysts told Asian Banking & Finance that the stablecoins bill passed in 2025 raises the bar on transparency and compliance, whilst unlocking opportunities for innovation in the digital asset space, analysts said.

The tokenisation infrastructure presents opportunities to bridge the trade finance gap, analysts told Asian Banking & Finance in 2025. 

It can replace traditional trade finance processes that are slow and susceptible to fraud, and at the same time create a viable, brand new asset class with a stable and attractive yield, one market expert said in an interview.