HashKey’s Hong Kong Market Debut Lacks Spark As Volatility Keeps Buyers On Edge

HashKey Holdings started trading in Hong Kong on Wednesday with an early pop that quickly cooled, as investors weighed the exchange’s long term pitch against a jittery crypto backdrop.

The company’s shares rose about 6% in the opening stretch, then gave back most of the move and dipped slightly below the IPO price of HK$6.68 later in the morning.

The listing followed an offering that raised about $206M, making HashKey the first crypto company to go public in Hong Kong.

Founded in 2018, the firm runs the city’s largest licensed crypto exchange and also offers brokerage, tokenization and asset management services.

Filings showed strong demand across the book. The institutional tranche drew subscriptions about 5.5 times the stock available, while the retail portion was nearly 394 times oversubscribed.

HashKey Secures Top-Tier Investors As Bitcoin Pulls Back

Investors also stepped into the deal through cornerstone allocations, including Fidelity, UBS, CDH Investments and Cithara Fund. JPMorgan and Guotai Haitong acted among the joint bookrunners.

The debut arrived as crypto prices swung sharply in recent months after earlier record highs. Bitcoin fell as much as 36% in about a month after reaching an all time peak above $126,000 in early October.

Xiao Feng, HashKey’s chairman and chief executive, said he remained upbeat on where digital assets are headed even as prices whipsaw. “My confidence is only growing stronger and I am more optimistic than 10 years ago because there’s more regulation and compliance guidelines for us to follow which will allow the industry to grow further,” he said.

Beijing Curb Meets Hong Kong Embrace Of Digital Assets

Hong Kong has leaned into digital assets even as mainland China keeps a tighter grip after Beijing banned cryptocurrency trading in 2021 and renewed warnings about virtual assets.

Xiao said mainland measures targeted pyramid schemes and fraud using stablecoins, and he framed Hong Kong’s approach as distinct.

“Hong Kong continues to promote policies regarding digital assets and we have benefited from that,” he said. “We should firmly adhere to ‘one country’, but wisely take advantage of ‘two systems.’”

IPO Funds Earmarked For Infrastructure And Expansion

HashKey currently remains loss-making and Xiao said the firm will focus on cash flow in the near term while continuing to invest as the sector develops. The prospectus said it plans to use IPO proceeds on technology infrastructure, market expansion and partnerships, and operational and risk management.

HashKey secured one of the earliest licences under Hong Kong’s 2022 digital asset regime, and research cited in its filing said it accounts for more than 75% of the city’s onshore digital asset trading volume.

Beyond spot trading, it runs on-chain services such as staking, tokenization and custody, and manages billions in client assets through funds and structured products aimed at institutional and high net worth investors.

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