Standard Chartered-incubated digital bank Mox Bank debuts crypto ETFs for retail investors

Standard Chartered’s virtual bank Mox Bank has become the first virtual bank in Hong Kong to offer spot crypto exchange-traded funds to retail investors.

Hong Kong-based digital bank Mox Bank has begun offering trading services with spot crypto ETFs as the city continues its efforts to become an international crypto hub. Mox said in a press release on Aug. 7 that it is the first virtual bank in Hong Kong to offer such investment options to retail investors.

The bank noted that the launch comes at a critical juncture, with a recent survey revealing that nearly a third of Hong Kong residents have engaged with cryptocurrencies. Mox also noted that a third of crypto holders are likely to shift their primary banking services to institutions offering crypto-related products.

Mox says it will offer a variety of crypto ETFs permitted under Hong Kong regulations, including spot and derivative crypto ETFs listed on Hong Kong and U.S. exchanges. The press release includes Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) for the spot ETFs, and futures for the derivative ETFs.

Standard Chartered invests in crypto

To attract customers, the bank will offer a transaction fee of 0.12% of the transaction value for HK-listed ETFs and US-listed ETFs. Mox added that it will not charge any additional custody or management fees beyond those charged by asset management companies managing certain ETFs.

Launched in September 2020, Mox is a virtual bank backed by Standard Chartered. This latest move underscores Standard Chartered’s commitment to expanding its footprint in the crypto space. In line with this strategy, the bank is also investing in other areas; most notably, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority announced in mid-July that Standard Chartered was among the participants in its stablecoin pilot, allowing the bank to experiment with issuing digital assets backed by fiat currencies.