By Iris Shu Liu and Joe Pan<\/p>\n\n\n\n
HONG KONG \u2014 JD.com plans to issue a stablecoin in Hong Kong and expand to Europe as the stablecoin market embraces diverse players, the company\u2019s chief economist said. As Hong Kong\u2019s Legislative Council moves toward the second reading of the Stablecoin Bill, the world\u2019s fifth-largest ecommerce operator by market capitalization is poised to become the first Chinese ecommerce giant to launch a 1-to-1 Hong Kong dollar-pegged stablecoin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A stablecoin is a type of cryptocurrency designed to maintain a stable value, typically pegged to fiat currencies such as the U.S. dollar or euro, or to assets like gold or oil. JD.com was among the first three companies selected by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority for a regulatory \u2018sandbox\u2019 test in July 2024. The other participants are RD InnoTech Limited and a consortium comprising Standard Chartered Bank (Hong Kong) Limited, Animoca Brands Limited, and Hong Kong Telecommunications (HKT) Limited.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe goal of JD\u2019s stablecoin is to enhance global supply chain and payment capabilities, once issued in Hong Kong, it is expected to be deployed globally.\u201d Shen Jianguang, vice president and chief economist at JD Group, said in an interview during the Hong Kong Web 3.0 Festival in April.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Shen JIanguang of JD.com Photo by Joe Pan<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jingdong Coinlink Technology Hong Kong Limited, JD.com\u2019s stablecoin issuer, will officially release the specifics of the 1-to-1 to Hong Kong dollar-pegged stablecoin when the Hong Kong Stablecoin Bill is finalized. The third or final reading of the Stablecoin Bill at the Hong Kong Legislative Council (Legco) is expected to take place in the second half of 2025 according to Duncan Chiu, Chairman of the Stablecoin Bill Committee, who shared the projected timeline of the Bill during a fiat-reference stablecoin (FRS) focused summit in February.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On April 25, Chiu presented a summary of the Bills Committee\u2019s deliberations to the House Committee, noting support for the Administration\u2019s proposed amendments and confirming the Bill\u2019s second reading is scheduled for May 21.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Separately, Shen said JD.com may also seek a license under the European Union\u2019s Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulations, which require local authorization for legal stablecoin issuance<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He noted that U.S. dollar-linked stablecoins currently account for 95% of global issuance. Under MiCA, the volume of stablecoin transactions subject to regulation will be smaller than that of U.S. dollar-related stablecoins.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Shen Jianguang spoke at the Web 3.0 Festival, on April 7, photo by Iris Liu
The two largest stablecoins globally are Tether\u2019s USDT and Circle\u2019s USDC. Although USDT\u2019s asset disclosures have been questioned, it remains the most widely used stablecoin globally, partly due to its lower cost and fee structure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Shen said JD\u2019s stablecoin trading will depend on customer demand, and expects JD\u2019s stablecoin and USDT to be paired and exchangeable in the future. Outside Europe, JD Group will comply with local laws and meet licensing requirements where applicable. In markets such as Japan and Singapore, if a Hong Kong-issued stablecoin is recognized and regulated locally, reissuance will not be required.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Asked why stablecoins are needed given China\u2019s digital yuan, Shen explained that the digital yuan is centrally issued and regulated by the People\u2019s Bank of China, whereas stablecoins are typically commercially issued, decentralized, and tailored to customer needs. The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government has issued stablecoin licenses and has a digital Hong Kong dollar, adopting cross-border data strategies involving the central bank.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Regarding risks that commercially issued stablecoins might not be fully backed one-to-one by central bank currency, Shen said JD\u2019s stablecoin will be licensed and regulated by Hong Kong\u2019s financial regulator and that not everyone is qualified to issue stablecoins. Shen also noted JD.com\u2019s stablecoin plan includes purchasing Hong Kong Dollar bonds as part of the pegging measure and asset management strategy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cRegulated and unregulated stablecoins may coexist, but market participants bear corresponding costs and risks,\u201d he said. \u201cWe are at the beginning of Web 3.0, and many things are evolving.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
About the Authors<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Iris Shu Liu is a recent graduate of the HKBU Business and Financial Journalism Program. She was the winner for Best Business Reporting and Best Newspaper Design in the 2022 China Daily Campus Newspaper Awards (English Edition). She is currently an intern correspondent for National Business Daily (NBD), a China-based business daily newspaper with a readership and reach of 100 million.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Joe Pan is an editor at Blockwind News and an early adopter of blockchain technology. He has covered major crypto conferences globally since 2019 and moderated Web3 events across Asia. Joe is part of the founding team of Blockwind News and teaches Asia\u2019s only accredited Master of Journalism course on \u201cCovering Cryptocurrency and Blockchain\u201d at Hong Kong Baptist University.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" By Iris Shu Liu and Joe Pan HONG KONG \u2014 JD.com plans to issue a stablecoin in Hong Kong and expand to Europe as the stablecoin market embraces diverse players, the company\u2019s chief economist said. As Hong Kong\u2019s Legislative Council moves toward the second reading of the Stablecoin Bill, the world\u2019s fifth-largest ecommerce operator by […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":12391,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12390","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-uncategorized"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n