Gate.HK intends to restart services following the acquisition of the required licences and plans a significant revamp to comply with legislation. Gate is a cryptocurrency exchange situated in Hong Kong.Due to noncompliance with the local licencing laws that will come into effect on June 1st, HK has closed.
All cryptocurrency exchanges operating in the region are required to get an operational licence by the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (SFC). Exchanges that did not submit a licence application are required to cease operations by May 31. Gate.HK complied with this criteria and on February 28 submitted its licence application to the SFC. On May 22, however, the exchange withdrew the application, stating that its trading platform needed a “major overhaul.”
Gate.HK has stopped all marketing and user acquisition efforts as of May 23. Current customers can only withdraw money till August 28 and are no longer able to make deposits. Open.On May 28, HK will permanently delist all of its tokens and shut down its trading platform. Among the tokens on the list were Tether, Bitcoin, Ether, Solana, and Polygon.
The cryptocurrency exchange won’t be reopening for business until its platform has been rebuilt to meet Hong Kong regulatory standards. Among these demands are the implementation of counterterrorism financing and anti-money laundering procedures. The business stated:
“Gate.HK is presently working on the previously mentioned redesign. After receiving the necessary licences, we intend to eventually return to business in Hong Kong and make a contribution to the virtual asset ecosystem.
Three other exchanges, Huobi HK, QuanXLab, and IBTCEX, also withdrew their licence applications in May prior to Gate.HK’s withdrawal. Nine cryptocurrency exchanges have withdrew their applications in Hong Kong altogether. Twenty bitcoin exchanges are still actively applying for Hong Kong’s cryptocurrency licence as of May 24.
The SFC may permit spot Ethe exchange-traded fund (ETF) issuers to add an ETH staking option, allowing them to earn passive revenue, according to a recent Bloomberg story. After receiving proposals in recent weeks, the SFC is said to have explored offering staking services via authorised platforms with the nation’s cryptocurrency ETF issuers. The banking regulator is debating the issue right now, and no deadline for implementation has been established.