Interview with HashKeyGroup: Hong Kong is very good, and HashKey is also very good!

Recently, the "little essay" about Hong Kong's Web3 development and HashKey Group has sparked heated discussions on social media. In response to various doubts such as "layoffs", "lack of funds", and "compliance not being profitable", HashKey has responded to external concerns for the first time in an exclusive interview. In this exchange, HashKey did not shy away from controversy, but instead told the story of a long-term thinker.

Reporter: How does Hash Key view the recent discussions?

**HashKey: **Recently, an article about HashKey has indeed sparked a lot of discussion, and many friends have inquired about the company's situation. First of all, thank you all for your concern. Quoting a famous saying: **"Denigration is, in itself, a form of admiration." We would like to take this opportunity to chat with everyone.

Reporter: There are voices saying that the Web3 development in Hong Kong is too slow, and even believe that "Hong Kong has missed the opportunity". How does HashKey see this?

**HashKey: **We understand the anxiety of wanting to "see results," especially in the context of the highly volatile global virtual asset market. However, we must emphasize one point: The institutional construction of Web3 is a "marathon," not a sprint.

Since the issuance of the Virtual Assets Policy Statement by the HKSAR Government in 2022, Hong Kong has begun to systematically build a compliance framework. This is not a "slogan", but a solid step by step from legislation, licenses, market mechanisms to investor protection. These views reflect their use of a "stopwatch" to measure the results of a "marathon". A comparison between Hong Kong and the world's largest international financial center is understandable if it is to incentivize Hong Kong. However, it is still biased to deny Hong Kong's policies and achievements in the development of Web3.

When the SAR government announced the "Virtual Asset Policy Declaration" in 2022, not many believed in the development of Hong Kong as an international center for virtual assets. HashKey responded to the call of the SAR government by holding the first Web3 Carnival at the beginning of 2023, and initially, many people were skeptical. Fortunately, there was still a group of pioneers who actively participated and contributed to the event.

We remember that just three days before the opening of the carnival, direct air tickets from Singapore to Hong Kong were hard to find. Many of my friends came to Hong Kong from Seoul, Tokyo, Shenzhen and Guangzhou. This year, two professional organizations in the United States have chosen Hong Kong to hold one conference each. There are three 10,000-person conferences in Hong Kong a year, representing the Web3 industry in China and the United States. As the "initiator" of HashKey, on the one hand, we are honored, on the other hand, we also quietly have a trace of "vinegar", and from time to time we will think of a Hong Kong proverb: "No one ploughs the thin field, but someone fights for the ploughing!" ”

What are we fighting for? The world is full of turmoil, all for the sake of profit.

Reporter: Compared to the United States, South Korea, and Dubai, is Hong Kong's pace slower? Will this weaken its international competitiveness? How does HashKey respond to the doubts about the "narrow Hong Kong market"?

HashKey：

Hong Kong is indeed not the "fastest", but we do not consider this a disadvantage.

Some regions adopt a radical model of "first release, then manage," which indeed attracted traffic in the early stages, but also brought problems such as regulatory uncertainty and gaps in asset security. In contrast, Hong Kong has chosen the route of "building the system while guiding the ecosystem," using internationally accepted Compliance standards as a foundation to create a sustainably operating financial market.

We often say: speed does not equal quality, and stability does not equal slowness. Hong Kong is the third largest international financial center in the world, with top-notch legal systems, financial regulatory capabilities, and institutional capital resources. What true builders value is not the speed of the starting line, but the safety and return at the finish line.

Regarding the doubts about the "narrowness of the Hong Kong market", as an international financial center, Hong Kong has a large number of high net worth individuals, as well as sufficient family offices, listed companies, financial institutions, and investment funds. These institutions and funds come with Compliance requirements, and in Hong Kong, any financial service requires KYC and AML.

Reporter: The insurance coverage of HashKey has surpassed $1 billion, making it a first in the industry. What does this represent?

Hash****Key: This is a milestone worth sharing.

Initially, insurance companies were very cautious about the underwriting limits for cryptocurrency trading platforms, and HashKey only obtained a limit of around $100 million. By continuously improving risk control processes, optimizing asset management systems, and strengthening compliance reviews, our insurance capability has received high recognition from insurance institutions. Today, HashKeyExchange's insurance coverage scale has exceeded $1 billion, making it the largest in the world, an increase of more than 10 times compared to the initial insurance limit.

This is the market's genuine trust in our platform "Security + Compliance."

Reporter: Is it true that some people question "Compliance doesn't make money"?

HashKey:** This is a common misconception. In fact, the cost of compliance is never the biggest problem, the key is whether you have the ability to turn compliance into trust dividends and economies of scale**.

We would like to share some information: HashKeyExchange's Hong Kong station achieved break-even in less than two years, which is rare among global compliance exchanges. We believe that conducting compliance business according to the rules is not a reason to be subjected to FUD (Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt).

We have also emphasized that we will not sacrifice compliance for growth speed. We believe that the era of "barbaric growth" will eventually pass, and compliance is the passport that allows Web3 to truly enter the mainstream financial system.

We have reason to believe that compliance is the only way for Web3 to empower the real economy. The transformation of compliance capability into market advantage needs to go through the chain reaction process of obtaining regulatory licenses, → trust capital accumulation→ ecological network construction, and → business value release. HashKeyExchange's over-the-counter block trading** (OPT)** business has seen explosive growth recently, with transaction volume surging by more than 400% in the first quarter of 2025 compared to the same period last year, a record high. It is the empirical evidence that this process has entered the explosive phase. HashKey proves that compliant exchanges can be profitable.

Reporter: But the cost of providing virtual asset trading services in Hong Kong is indeed very high, will this affect the attractiveness of the industry?

HashKey: Yes, the cost of engaging in virtual asset trading services in Hong Kong is indeed significantly higher than in places where KYC is not required and AML is not conducted.

But the truth is that there are still dozens of institutions coming to Hong Kong to apply for licenses. The compliance of virtual assets is a long track with a dimension of years or even ten years. The rhythm of "one day in the currency circle, ten years in the world" may have made some people accustomed to the fast-forward mode, but this does not mean that Hong Kong's pace is slowing down. The solid progress from the issuance of VASPs on the exchange to the legislation of stablecoins confirms the forward-looking and steady progress of Hong Kong's strategy.

Reporter: Recently there have been rumors that Hash Key is undergoing large-scale layoffs and even facing a shortage of funds. Is this true?

HashKey: Thank you for your concern, we are indeed in the process of realigning our strategy and upgrading our organization, and of course, it also involves the optimization of personnel. The only thing we can guarantee is that HashKey will continue to adjust, optimize and upgrade its team in the past and in the future to increase the density of talent and better support the Group's strategic layout based in Hong Kong and global development. In order to implement the decision of strategic adjustment, business focus and personnel optimization made by the company's strategy meeting in March this year, the proportion of talent adjustment is basically between 10% and 20%.

Specifically, talent replacement is mainly considered from the following four aspects: employees with inconsistent values, employees who have not met performance standards, employees in positions that can be replaced by AI technology, and employees whose positions have changed due to strategic adjustments and business focus, which offer a two-way choice. We believe that those partners who leave HashKey will continue to shine on a stage that is more suitable for them.

The global employee count of HashKey Group has grown from over 500 at the end of last year to over 600 today. Where does the large-scale layoffs come from? The annual employee turnover rate remains below 15%. We are continuously bringing in fresh talent to help drive the company's long-term development. Currently, HashKey is accelerating the expansion of rapidly growing business lines such as HashKeyOTC Global and HashKeyChain, consistently recruiting outstanding professionals from around the world. We sincerely invite talented individuals who share the Web3 belief, recognize the importance of Compliance values, and align with our strategic direction to join us in building a compliant ecological future for the virtual asset industry.

In addition, everyone is very concerned about HashKey's financial situation, so let me briefly mention - HashKey is not short on funds!

HashKey's shareholders are financially strong, especially our majority shareholders. Over the past few years, our majority shareholders have provided hundreds of millions of dollars in solid financial support and are committed to continuing to act as HashKey's strongest "logistics minister" to provide financial security. As mentioned earlier, it has only taken less than two years for Hash Key Exchange Hong Kong to break even, and our asset management business and infrastructure business have been profitable. **The group's continued external financing is the need for further business expansion and business development, and the industry is growing rapidly, and there are too many things to do. For example, the promotion of asset tokenization, the acquisition of cards by HashKeyChain and new markets, and the establishment of new compliant exchanges. It is worth mentioning that our Middle East station has just opened in May this year, and we are still applying for licenses in Europe and other regions at the same time. 10,000 years is too long, seize the day!

Reporter: There are also controversies regarding HSK ecological coin in the external environment, with opinions that it lacks upward momentum. How does HashKey view this?

**HashKey: We understand that everyone pays attention to price performance, but HashKey eco-coin HSK is not a coin designed for "short-term speculation", and the value of HSK is based on empowering the construction of a compliant ecosystem. It is obviously one-sided to place HSK in the evaluation framework of "monthly ups and downs" in the currency circle. We focus on building and improving the entire ecosystem, and enhance the long-term value of HSK by continuously promoting ecological development and innovation. At the same time, we will not manipulate the price behavior of HSK, the positioning of HSK is the core incentive mechanism of the entire ecological platform.

Reporter: Is compliance and decentralization inherently contradictory?

Hash****Key: This is a very common but also a necessary point to correct.

Decentralization is a technological architecture, compliance is a market system, and the two are not contradictory. For Web3 to truly impact the real economy and enter the mainstream financial world, it must have institutional support, legal protection, and regulatory oversight. Otherwise, user scale, capital size, and ecological complexity cannot be sustained.

HashKey has always believed that true Web3 is not about "de-regulation", but about "new governance". Compliance is a bridge, not a ceiling.

Reporter: What are the strategic priorities for HashKey in the future?

Hash****Key: We are standing at the starting point of the "second growth curve" and will focus on the following directions:

•Infrastructure: HashKeyChain was officially launched to promote asset tokenization;

•International Expansion: The Middle East station has opened, and applications for licenses in Europe and other potential markets are also underway;

•Deepening Trading Business: OTC, options, wealth management, and professional services will be key directions;

•Ecosystem Development: Strengthen HSK incentive mechanisms, develop on-chain tools, and introduce developer communities.

We have long prepared for this and will continue to adhere to our patient investment with a ten-year timeframe.

Reporter: Finally, what expectations does HashKey have for the long-term development of Web3 in Hong Kong?

HashKey: Standing at the starting point of the second growth curve, HashKey has made plans in terms of strategic positioning, business focus, resource preparation, and capability building. We set a ten-year period! We firmly believe that in a long race, the outcome ultimately depends on endurance and strength, rather than the speed of the start. Don't be too anxious, the long race has just begun.

Hong Kong is great! HashKey is also great! Keep it up!