coindesk.com
Trading on the first licensed cryptocurrency exchange in Hong Kong has gone live.
According to a press release shared with CoinDesk on Monday, BC Group subsidiary OSL has executed its first customer trades through its trading desk.
The crypto trading platform is the only one in the jurisdiction to hold both the Type-1 and Type 7 licenses – first granted by Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) in August 2020. A type-1 allows the platform to deal in securities, while a Type-7 license permits digital asset activity. The exchange is also audited by “Big Four” accounting firm PwC.
Huobi recently announced it had been granted Type-4 and Type-9 licenses from the SFC to manage and advise on securities investments.
OSL’s first live trades comes after a trial-use period that was completed with the participation from trading partners and investors, according to the release.
The exchange targets institutional and professional investors providing them with custody, prime brokerage, exchange and software as a service.
“With today’s trades, we break new ground for financial services in Asia,” said OSL CEO Wayne Trench. “Trading and storing digital assets like bitcoin can now be securely conducted in Hong Kong with the supervision of a world-leading regulator.”
See also: BC Group, VSAL Join Forces to Serve Institutional Bitcoin Market in Asia