Hong Kong’s stablecoin issuer IDA raises $6m in round led by CMCC Global and Hashed

Hong Kong-based firm IDA has raised $6 million in seed funding to accelerate the launch of its first fiat-referenced stablecoin.

Hong Kong-based digital asset firm IDA has raised $6 million in seed funding to develop its first fiat-referenced and regulated stablecoin, HKDA, led by CMCC Global’s Titan Fund and Hashed.

In a press release on September 2, the stablecoin issuer announced that angel investors like Solana co-founder Raj Gokal, as well as other investors like Hack VC, Anagram, GSR, and Protagonist, also participated in the funding round. Additionally, IDA has partnered with blockchain foundations like Solana, Polygon, and Aptos to “enhance HKDA’s interoperability, accessibility, resilience, and liquidity.”

The funds will support the company’s efforts to engage with local regulators such as the Hong Kong Monetary Authority as it forecasts significant growth in the stablecoin market, which it expects to “exceed $3 trillion” in the next five years.

Sean Lee, co-founder and CSO of IDA, says HKDA is built on public blockchains and is expected to launch on a testnet soon, with a mainnet release planned by the end of the year and regulatory approval targeted for early 2025. The press release notes that IDA eventually aims to expand its offerings beyond Hong Kong, targeting other USD-pegged economies and other countries along the Belt and Road and Global South initiatives.

The funding round comes as the HKMA announced the participants of its stablecoin trial zone, which will begin testing fiat-backed digital currencies. The HKMA clarified that the participants will not process public funds or solicit investments during the initial trial zone phase.