Animoca Founder Yat Siu Hong Kong Could Potentially Allow Ether Spot ETFs as Collateral Services as Early as This Year

According to The Block, Yat Siu, founder and chairman of blockchain gaming company Animoca Brands, stated that asset management institutions in Hong Kong are working on introducing staking into their Ethereum spot ETF, hoping that the staking reward feature will be approved this year.

Siu, in an interview with The Block, mentioned that Hong Kong is currently discussing the issue of “Ethereum (ETH) staking,” and the possibility of staking being approved in Asia before the United States is “almost an expected outcome.” Siu also mentioned:

HashKey, which manages two spot ETFs in Hong Kong in collaboration with Bosera Funds, is working on a proposal to introduce Ethereum staking. Livio Weng, CEO of HashKey Exchange, stated, “We have devised a plan aimed at earning rewards without increasing risk.” He added that more undisclosed details are still under discussion.

As the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has clearly stated that Ethereum spot ETFs are not allowed to have staking functionality (at least for now), the possibility of staking rewards could give similar fund products in Hong Kong a competitive advantage.

Related report: “Market experts: Ethereum spot ETF issuers canceling staking plans may reduce attractiveness of such funds.”