Hong Kong has approved Victory Fintech to run a regulated crypto trading platform, the first new license granted since June 17 last year.
Quick Summary – TLDR:
- Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission has granted Victory Fintech a virtual asset trading platform license.
- Victory becomes the first newly approved platform since June 17 last year, taking the total to 12 licensed platforms.
- The move highlights how Hong Kong remains open to crypto, but only for firms that can meet its high compliance bar.
What Happened?
Hong Kong’s SFC has granted a crypto license to Victory Fintech (VDX), an affiliate of publicly listed financial services firm Victory Securities (8540). The approval appeared on the SFC’s public registry on Friday, making Victory the first new licensed platform added since June 17 last year.
Hong Kong just added another name to its regulated crypto list.
— gemsmorro (@gemsmorro) February 16, 2026
The SFC granted a license to Victory Fintech (VDX), bringing the total to 12 approved platforms.
HK isn’t handing these out easily btw, it’s one of the strictest licensing regimes among major financial hubs. pic.twitter.com/QLKfjuPxOJ
A new name joins a tightly controlled list
Victory’s approval matters because Hong Kong’s licensing list grows slowly, and every new entry is a signal about how regulators are thinking. With Victory added, the SFC registry now shows 12 approved crypto trading platforms.
That list includes Bullish (BLSH), a New York Stock Exchange listed company that is also the parent of CoinDesk. The presence of publicly listed firms on the registry adds a layer of visibility and corporate oversight that traditional investors often care about.
For Victory, the license is also a clear step forward in business terms. The authorization allows the company to operate a regulated digital asset trading platform in Hong Kong, one of Asia’s most watched financial centers.
What it unlocks?
Victory Fintech received its license on February 13, 2026, joining a select group of authorized operators in the region. In practice, this means Victory can offer digital asset trading under Hong Kong’s supervision, within a framework that demands strong controls around how customer assets are handled and how the platform is run.
Hong Kong’s system is not designed to quickly approve a long list of exchanges. Instead, it emphasizes careful entry, ongoing oversight, and strict requirements before any platform can serve the market legally.
That is why the first new approval since mid June last year stands out. It suggests the door is still open, but it opens only for firms that can meet the SFC’s expectations.
Why Hong Kong’s crypto rules are seen as strict?
Hong Kong introduced its current regulatory regime for crypto service providers in 2023, with Hashkey Exchange and OSL Digital Securities among the first to gain approval. From the start, officials positioned the framework as fully supervised, not a casual testing ground.
Platforms seeking approval must satisfy requirements tied to capital strength, custody safeguards, compliance systems, and governance standards. Those demands have helped the regime build a reputation as one of the strictest among major financial jurisdictions.
The strictness has also had a real market impact. In May 2024, major global exchanges OKX and Bybit withdrew their applications for licensing, showing that not every large player is willing to reshape its model to fit Hong Kong’s rulebook.
What this says about Hong Kong’s bigger ambition?
Hong Kong wants to be a regulated digital asset hub in Asia, balancing innovation with oversight. Victory’s approval adds another option inside the legal ecosystem, but the overall number of licensed platforms remains modest compared with places that take a looser approach.
Still, the slow and selective growth may be exactly the point. For some investors, especially those used to Hong Kong’s broader financial standards, a smaller list of regulated venues can feel safer than a crowded market with uneven supervision.
The next signal to watch is whether more applicants can meet the same bar, and whether global exchanges decide the opportunity is worth the compliance burden.
SQ Magazine Takeaway
I see this as Hong Kong sticking to its personality: serious rules, slow approvals, and a clear message that compliance comes first. If you are a trader or investor, the growing list of licensed platforms is helpful because it makes it easier to separate regulated options from the rest. But the bigger story is what Hong Kong is not doing. It is not rushing to hand out approvals just to look crypto friendly. It is choosing a controlled path, and Victory just proved that the path is still open.
