After WOW Summit Hong Kong 2025: Hong Kong's Web3 Playbook: Policy, Banks, and the RWA Race

After WOW Summit Hong Kong 2025: Hong Kong's Web3 Playbook: Policy, Banks, and the RWA Race - Blockchain.News

What regulators and Tier-1 institutions just signaled, why tokenized real-world assets are the fastest lane, and how HK can set the template for other hubs.

Hong Kong just put a marker down. WOW Summit Hong Kong 2025 brought policymakers, banks, exchanges, and Web3 builders into the same rooms—and the signals were unusually clear: regulation-first growth, institution-grade rails (especially for stablecoins), and a strong push into real-world asset (RWA) tokenization. The two-day event ran September 9–10, 2025 at AsiaWorld-Expo, framed around Web3 + AI tracks and a dedicated RWA program.

1) Policy: from consultation to code-of-law (and live licensing soon)

Hong Kong’s stablecoin ordinance—passed in May 2025 and effective August 1, 2025—is the anchor of the city’s post-WOW policy narrative. It establishes a licensing regime for fiat-referenced stablecoin issuers under the HKMA, with requirements on reserves, redemption, and risk controls. These rules convert years of consultation into statutory footing and set expectations that licenses will follow on a predictable timetable.

The HKMA’s public materials and consultation conclusions (with the FSTB) detail the scope and supervisory approach; together, they create the “compliance-first” chassis many institutions were waiting for. That context mattered on stage at WOW, where policy sessions and Web3 tracks repeatedly referenced stablecoins, CBDC, tokenisation, and market infrastructure.

Why it matters: For global readers, Hong Kong is now one of the few major hubs with a formal, active stablecoin regime. That gives banks, payment firms, and exchanges a regulated path to launch products that interoperate with traditional finance—key for RWAs, settlement, and treasury use cases.

2) Institutions showed up: officials, the SFC—and banks in digital assets roles

WOW’s speaker roster blended government, regulators, and Tier-1 brands. Names included Joseph H. L. Chan (Under Secretary, FSTB), Elizabeth Wong (Head of Fintech Unit, SFC), and Bugra Celik (Director, Digital Assets, HSBC), alongside Animoca Brands co-founder Yat Siu and The Sandbox’s Sébastien Borget. The event’s own channels and partner listings confirm the lineup.

Crucially, this alignment now extends beyond the stage. In August 2025, Standard Chartered announced a joint venture (Anchorpoint Financial) with Animoca Brands and HKT to apply for a Hong Kong stablecoin issuer license under the new ordinance—a concrete sign that incumbent finance intends to operate inside the regime.

Why it matters: Institutional participation turns policy into product. When banks and large corporates commit capital and compliance staff to Hong Kong vehicles, it accelerates vendor selection (custody, KYC/AML, audit), liquidity formation, and enterprise-grade launches.

3) The RWA race: a dedicated track—and a practical path to scale

One of WOW’s headline threads was RWA tokenization: turning claims on traditional assets into on-chain instruments with regulated issuance, attestation, and redemption. Organizers highlighted a dedicated RWA Summit track; the published agenda tags also emphasized #TOKENISATION across the Web3 stages. Attendance figures reported by post-event press recaps underscore interest (over 4,000 participants from 30+ countries).

In Hong Kong, RWA momentum pairs naturally with the new stablecoin regime: fiat rails for settlement and cash management, plus a licensing perimeter for issuers and distributors. For banks and brokers, this means tokenized money-market funds, deposit-like stablecoins, bonds, invoices/receivables, or fund shares can be structured with clearer supervisory expectations than in many peer hubs.

Context you should not ignore: On September 23, 2025, Reuters reported that China’s securities regulator (CSRC) informally asked some mainland brokerages to pause RWA tokenization activities in Hong Kong—a reminder that cross-border sensitivities will influence how quickly certain asset classes go on-chain. This doesn’t change Hong Kong’s ordinance, but it may shape which firms lead near-term pilots and how they communicate risk.

4) What “the Hong Kong template” looks like (post-WOW)

A live legal regime for fiat-referenced stablecoins with licensing and supervisory guidelines—plus ongoing HKMA/SFC statements that clarify market conduct. Expect first movers to prioritize compliance-heavy, short-duration RWAs (cash equivalents, treasuries) where auditability is strong.
Public-sector presence at industry events (WOW) and coordination with InvestHK/StartmeupHK—useful for founders and global firms relocating teams or setting up licensed entities.
Tier-1 participation (e.g., Standard Chartered’s JV) catalyzing vendor ecosystems (custody, attestations, trustees, oracles) and setting de facto standards for security, reporting, and interoperability.
Programmatic focus on tokenisation + AI: WOW’s Web3/AI dual-track format mirrors where Hong Kong expects value—automation of compliance and operations in digital-asset markets.

5) For builders and investors: the immediate to-do list

Design for the license: If your product touches issuance, redemption, or reserve representations, build to the HKMA rulebook (governance, reserves, redemption SLAs, AML/CFT). This is the gating item for scale.
Prioritize bank-friendly RWAs: Start with instruments whose cash flows and legal claims are familiar to institutional risk teams (T-bills, deposits, fund units), and pair them with regulated stablecoin settlement.
Plan for cross-border nuance: The CSRC’s reported pause request shows policy is dynamic; structure HK entities and disclosures accordingly, and monitor regulator statements.
Leverage the event network: WOW’s speaker list spans regulators, banks, and major Web3 brands—use those connections to align on custody, audit, and secondary-market venues early.

Sources: Official WOW Summit HK 2025 site (speakers; government, SFC, HSBC participation). WOW Summit, Agenda tags emphasising stablecoins/CBDC/tokenisation/AI. WOW Summit, Event dates and scale from official channels and post-event coverage (Sept 9–10, 2025; 4,000+ attendees). WOW Summit+1, Stablecoin ordinance passed (May 21, 2025) and now in force (Aug 1, 2025), plus legal overviews. Reuters+2Reed Smith+2, Standard Chartered–Animoca–HKT stablecoin JV announcement (Aug 8, 2025). Reuters, CSRC guidance to pause RWA tokenization by some mainland brokers in HK (Sept 23, 2025). Reuters

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