While Sam Bankman-Fried was waiting for the jury in his fraud trial to return their verdict last week, Hong Kong FinTech Week 2023, a new annual conference hosted by the local government, was well underway.
Unlike people in the US, where the SBF trial is just one episode amid a prolonged crypto winter, those in Hong Kong were feeling much more optimistic. Attendees excitedly discussed the future of tokenized assets, central-bank digital currencies, and even NFTs—beaming with hopes that’d be hard to find elsewhere.
In Hong Kong, crypto execs have found a rare place where the government is welcoming. And for the city, this new digital frontier seems like an opportunity to rewire its economy. But moving this fast is a high-risk bet. Read the full story.
—Zeyi Yang
This story is from China Report, our weekly newsletter covering tech and power in China. Sign up to receive it in your inbox every Tuesday.
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