Trading Launch: What You Need to Know

Hashkey, the pioneering crypto exchange in Hong Kong, has just announced that it will begin trading Avalanche’s AVAX. But hold your horses—only those with wallets heavy enough to hold over 8 million Hong Kong dollars can get in on the action. That’s about a million bucks if your money has a passport!

The Professional Investor Only Zone

As per the guidelines from the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (SFC), only professional investors are welcome to this AVAX party. So, if you’re a casual trader or your investment portfolio doesn’t hit the million-dollar mark, you may want to stay away from this new feature. Currently, the SFC has only approved Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), and Tether (USDT) for retail trading, leaving many altcoins behind the velvet rope.

Hashkey’s Unique Requirements

In a world where deposits of a few cents can get you access to exchanges, Hashkey is taking a different approach. The exchange mandates a deposit of $1,500 as part of its Know Your Customer (KYC) verification process. That might make some future traders wish they’d started saving their pennies a little earlier.

Investments Need Infrastructure

Setting up a virtual asset service provider (VASP) license isn’t cheap either. Crypto exchanges like Hashkey are spending upwards of $25 million to get their infrastructure in place. This hefty figure is necessary for the compliance needed to operate within the boundaries of Hong Kong’s strict financial regulations. Yet, despite these costs, Hashkey’s 24-hour trading volume hovers around a mere $5.3 million—pocket change when compared to its global counterparts.

Regulation and Controversy

Ironically, the establishment of stricter regulations hasn’t put a lid on financial shenanigans. Just recently, a significant fraud incident emerged during the Token2049 conference that involved the collapse of the JPEX crypto exchange. The police claim that JPEX embezzled over $178 million from investors, and surprise, surprise—it was operating without SFC’s approval at the time. Since this debacle, the SFC has started publishing a warning list of disreputable exchanges in the region.

Conclusion: A Picky Party

For now, if you’re a professional investor, you can dive into the AVAX waters on Hashkey. For the rest of you, it looks like you’ll have to settle for Bitcoin’s wild ride or stick to your memes and popsicles until you hit that professional investor milestone!