Hong Kong Securities and Futures Professionals Association Calls for Suspension of Mandatory Virtual Asset Industry Examination Enforcement via Hidden Policy

Deep Tide TechFlow News, February 21 — According to Hong Kong media outlet Orange News, Chen Zhihua, President of the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Professionals Association, disclosed that the virtual asset industry in Hong Kong is facing an unexpected “compliance storm.” Industry practitioners reported that during the application process for virtual asset-related business licenses, they encountered bewildering regulatory requirements. The current written policy requires an additional 5 hours of continuous professional training (CPT), but the latest requirements have not been issued through formal written documents or public guidelines. Instead, they were “quietly” communicated to license upgrade applicants via verbal notices or individual emails, without warning. All personnel responsible for license upgrades (RO), including those who have already obtained upgrade qualifications, must pass a virtual asset regulation exam administered by a designated single organization. This nearly “invisible” method of instruction undermines the transparency and fairness that regulatory authorities should uphold. Chen Zhihua recommends maintaining the original requirement of an additional 5 hours of CPT and urges regulatory agencies to immediately suspend the enforcement of the exam requirement conducted through covert policies.