HSBC launched HSBC RedCoin (RCHKD), its Hong Kong dollar stablecoin, on its PayMe payments app on October 23, 2026. The bank said more than 3.3 million PayMe users will be able to activate an in-app stablecoin wallet over the coming days, and that the wallet will let them send RedCoin instantly to friends and family and pay at more than 100,000 merchants on PayMe.
Lawrence Li, head of PayMe, told the South China Morning Post that RedCoin is available only through PayMe and HSBC’s Hong Kong mobile banking app, and that users can activate the wallet without a minimum balance or a new account. He did not give a circulation target. Before the launch, HSBC ran a staff pilot with nearly 100 users to test the full customer journey, from minting and wallet activation to live transfers.
HSBC RedCoin Is Issued Under HKMA License FRS02
RedCoin is issued by The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation under a stablecoin issuer license FRS02, which the Hong Kong Monetary Authority granted on April 10, 2026. The HKMA received 36 applications in its first licensing round and approved two of them: HSBC and Anchorpoint Financial, a joint venture of Standard Chartered Bank (Hong Kong), HKT, and Animoca Brands. Disruption Banking reported in March that the two banks were in line for the first licenses.
According to HSBC’s RedCoin page, each token is fully backed at all times by high-quality, highly liquid segregated assets and is designed to be redeemable one-for-one for Hong Kong dollars. HSBC Digital Assets Custody provides safekeeping for the tokens. The product page does not specify which blockchain RedCoin runs on.
Tokenized Fund Subscriptions From HK$100 Are Due Later This Year
HSBC plans to add a stablecoin wallet to the HSBC HK Mobile Banking App later this year, allowing customers to use RedCoin to subscribe to tokenized investment products. The first will be a new share class of HSBC’s existing Hong Kong dollar money market fund, with subscriptions starting at HK100 (about $12.75), according to SCMP.
John O’Neill, HSBC’s managing director of digital assets and currencies, told the SCMP that paying for tokenized funds with a stablecoin allows subscriptions to settle instantly rather than over several days and lowers the minimum investment. He said tokenized gold and third-party funds would follow, and that HSBC is exploring wholesale uses with designated partners. In a LinkedIn post on launch day, O’Neill said the wholesale phase would serve corporate and institutional clients.
The bank already runs several tokenized products in Hong Kong. HSBC told the SCMP it has supported US$8.3 billion in digitally native bond issuance globally, and that its tokenized gold, which it introduced to retail customers in Hong Kong in 2024, has recorded US$2.5 billion in cumulative traded value.
Anchorpoint’s HKDAP Is Still Limited to Institutions
HSBC’s direct retail rollout differs from that of Hong Kong’s other licensed issuer. Anchorpoint began distributing its HKD At Par (HKDAP) stablecoin in August through authorized distributors that serve institutions, corporate users, and professional investors, and it is targeting broader retail adoption by the end of the year.
HSBC’s own research reveals gaps in customers’ understanding of the product category. In a June survey of 1,060 customers that the bank published when it named the coin on September 30, 74% recognized at least one use case for stablecoins. However, 26% assumed stablecoins are government-issued, and 10% expected them to pay interest, a feature that Hong Kong’s current regulatory framework does not include. HSBC said it would run a public education series on scam prevention and redemption alongside the rollout.
Author: Ayanfe Fakunle
The editorial team at #DisruptionBanking has taken all precautions to ensure that no persons or organizations have been adversely affected or offered any sort of financial advice in this article. This article is most definitely not financial advice.
