Crypto exchange HashKey clears key hearing for Hong Kong IPO
HashKey Holdings Limited has cleared the Hong Kong Stock Exchange's (HKEX) listing hearing, bringing the company a step closer to its initial public offering.HashKey, which operates Hong Kong's largest licensed crypto exchange, announced the development in its Post Hearing Information Pack on Monday following its earlier, confidential IPO filing. The HKEX listing hearing is a review by the stock exchange's listing committee, which makes decisions on listing applications, disciplinary matters and other regulatory issues for companies seeking to go public.After clearing the hearing, a company typically moves on to prospectus registration, followed by marketing, book-building and pricing.HashKey said it plans to use the IPO proceeds to upgrade its technological infrastructure, including product innovation and security, as well as to support market expansion and general corporate purposes.The company, however, has not disclosed the timeline or the size of the planned IPO, and declined to comment further on the matter. Bloomberg reported in October that HashKey is seeking to raise as much as $500 million through the offering this year. HashKey holds a license to operate as a virtual asset trading platform in Hong Kong. As of the end of September, its platforms supported 80 tokens, according to its Monday filing.The filing also shows that the company has been reporting net losses since 2022. In the first six months of 2025, HashKey booked a net loss of HK$506.7 million ($65 million), compared to a loss of HK$772.6 million ($99.2 million) in the same period last year."Our net losses and operating cash outflows during the Track Record Period primarily reflect the nature of our business development cycle and the substantial upfront investments required to establish a licensed, compliant and scalable digital asset platform," the company said in the filing.In a separate Monday release, HashKey announced that it has appointed JPMorgan and Guotai Junan Securities as sponsors for the offering.With the planned IPO, HashKey would join rival crypto exchange OSL as a publicly traded company in Hong Kong. OSL shares were trading down 7.6% on Monday afternoon with the markets still open, according to Yahoo Finance data.Disclaimer: The Block is an independent media outlet that delivers news, research, and data. As of November 2023, Foresight Ventures is a majority investor of The Block. Foresight Ventures invests in other companies in the crypto space. Crypto exchange Bitget is an anchor LP for Foresight Ventures. The Block continues to operate independently to deliver objective, impactful, and timely information about the crypto industry. Here are our current financial disclosures.© 2025 The Block. All Rights Reserved. This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.