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Hong Kong Doubles Down on Crypto Regulation With Staff Hires
The securities regulator wants to hire staff for market surveillance and enforcement investigations.

What to know:
- Hong Kong's SFC wants to add eight roles to support its crypto regulation regimes.
- Hong Kong started licensing crypto firms in 2023 and is working toward a stablecoins regime.
Hong Kong's Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) is looking to increase its headcount, with more than half the added roles dedicated to regulating crypto, according to a two-year budget plan presented to the Legislative Council, the region's legislative body known as Legco.
Despite freezing its headcount in three of the five financial years since 2020, it is looking to add another 15 people, eight of whom will be dedicated to crypto as the regulator furthers its commitment to regulate the industry.
"Eight of the proposed new headcount is for enhancing the staffing support for virtual asset regulatory regimes, market surveillance and enforcement investigations," the budget presented on Monday said.
The growth comes as Hong Kong's administration faces a budget deficit that is forecast to reach $HK100 million ($13 million) this year and is likely to announce budget cuts later this month, the South China Morning Post reported.
In June 2023, Hong Kong initiated a new licensing regime for crypto companies. Last year it said it would also license stablecoin providers. The country's stablecoin bill is still being discussed.
Camomile Shumba
Camomile Shumba is a CoinDesk regulatory reporter based in the UK. Previously, Shumba interned at Business Insider and Bloomberg. Camomile has featured in Harpers Bazaar, Red, the BBC, Black Ballad, Journalism.co.uk, Cryptopolitan.com and South West Londoner.
Shumba studied politics, philosophy and economics as a combined degree at the University of East Anglia before doing a postgraduate degree in multimedia journalism. While she did her undergraduate degree she had an award-winning radio show on making a difference. She does not currently hold value in any digital currencies or projects.

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Crypto Industry Asks President Trump to Stop JPMorgan’s 'Punitive Tax' on Data Access

A coalition of fintech and crypto trade groups is urging the White House to defend open banking and stop JPMorgan from charging fees to access customer data.
What to know:
- Ten major fintech and crypto trade associations have urged President Trump to stop big banks from imposing fees that could hinder innovation and competition.
- JPMorgan's plan to charge for access to consumer banking data may debank millions and threaten the adoption of stablecoins and self-custody wallets.
- The CFPB's open banking rule, which mandates free consumer access to bank data, is under threat as banks have sued to block it, and the CFPB has requested its vacatur.