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Building Open Finance: From Policy to Infrastructure | Written by: Douglas W. Arner, Christine Meng Lu Wang, Ross P. Buckley, and Dirk A. Zetzsche, in partnership with CFTE Academic and Industry Paper Series. LEARN MORE
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01:32 - Topic Introduction - Spotlight with Lucas Har
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03:06 - From Germany to Pyongyang: How North Korea’s Luxury Cars Expose the High-Stakes Reality of Modern Trade Compliance
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07:31 - China Joins the Global Export Control Game: What Its New Rules Mean for Businesses Everywhere
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10:08 - Lost in the Maze: How Regulatory Divergence and Poor Visibility Undermine Trade Compliance
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12:53 - Beyond Name Screening: Best Practices to Strengthen Trade Compliance and Risk Mitigation
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15:32 - Reputation Is Compliance: Why Asia-Pacific Firms Must Go Global with Their Ethics
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20:19 - Topic Introduction - with guests Joshua Chu & Melizza Anievas
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21:38 - How Hong Kong’s Stablecoin Law Advances Global Financial Integrity
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23:51 - From Meme Coins to Monetary Tools: The Push for Clearer Crypto Rules
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29:32 - Crypto Conflicts: The Politics Behind U.S. Regulatory Uncertainty
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31:51 - Still No Playbook: How Web3 Races Ahead of Global Rules in a Politicized Regulatory Landscape
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35:55 - Not Just a Tech Upgrade: Understanding Web3 as a Cultural Shift
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43:13 - Stablecoins, Legal Gaps, and Global Pressure: Why Hong Kong’s Market Size May Undermine Its Licensing Ambitions
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45:08 - How the Genius and Stable Acts Threaten Global Stablecoin Models
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49:02 - Narrative Wars & the New Crypto Voter: Politics, Power, and the Volatile Future of Web3
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56:14 - A Word of Caution: Why Crypto’s Biggest Risks May Still Lie Ahead
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58:31 - If Enough People Get Hurt: Meme Coins and the Risk of Stricter Rules
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1:01:05 - Innovation or Illusion? Regulation, Guardrails, and the Messaging Gap
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Crypto Fault Lines: Stablecoins, Meme Coins & the Fight for Clarity
PLUS: Sanctions, Shell Companies & Fragmented Global Trade
Ep #71 with Joshua Chu, Melizza Anievas and Lucas Har
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this podcast are solely those of the host and speakers.
This episode commences with a quick spotlight chat with Lucas Har from Dow Jones in Singapore about trade compliance, sanctions, dual-use goods and supply chain risk, especially given the currently frayed US-China trade relationship; particularly in the wake of increased US tariffs on China and Hong Kong.
We then move on to a discussion with Hong Kong-based Joshua Chu and Melizza Anievas to flesh out Hong Kong’s recently enacted Stablecoin Ordinance, meme coins versus stablecoins, as well as the ever-evolving global landscape for virtual assets given regulatory developments in the US.
On May 21, 2025, the Hong Kong Legislative Council passed the Stablecoins Ordinance, creating a formal licensing regime for fiat-referenced stablecoin (FRS) issuers. While local in implementation, the regulatory milestone decisively places Hong Kong in a broader Asian effort to shape the future of legitimate, rules-based decentralized finance (DeFi) and tokenized financial infrastructure.
The move came just one day after the US Senate passed the GENIUS Act. Against such a backdrop, Hong Kong’s move added momentum to global harmonization efforts around stablecoin regulation – directing the policy debate more towards how to develop trustable digital asset ecosystems with practical, real-world utility and functionality.
The territory’s new framework requires all issuers promoting fiat-backed stablecoins to the general public locally to be licensed by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) – the city’s banking regulator and de facto central bank.
Additionally, issuers must: hold reserves in either cash or high-quality, highly liquid assets such as short-term government securities; stablecoins must be redeemable at par value at any time; issuers must regularly disclose reserve holdings and undergo audits; and AML/CFT compliance and risk controls are required.
This regulatory clarity is paired with active development. For example, Hong Kong’s Stablecoin Sandbox which was launched last year has enabled the likes of Standard Chartered, Animoca Brands and JD Coinlink to test real-world use cases across payments, capital markets and trade finance. Ultimately, it reflects a coordinated effort to turn policy into practical rails for tokenized activity.
Joshua Chu is a prominent Hong Kong lawyer in all matters fintech and crypto, and a prolific writer. His opinion and insights are much sought after by the local press and correspondents of major foreign news organizations operating in the city. You can often hear him at his most candid on radio at RTHK.
Joshua is also co-chair of the Hong Kong Web 3 Association and legal advisor to the Hong Kong Blockchain Association.
Melizza Anievas is a co-founder and executive director of Women in Web3 Hong Kong. Under her leadership, Women in Web3 Hong Kong has grown to over 1,500 members and secured over HK$300,000 in sponsorships within a year – including establishing working relationships with Google Cloud Hong Kong, The Sandbox and Animoca Brands. A Web3 veteran since 2019, Melizza excels at devising growth-driven strategies and operating hyper-growth businesses.
Lucas Har is based in Singapore and has been with Dow Jones Risk & Compliance for nearly a decade. He began his career with a focus on Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Counter-Terrorism Financing (CTF) research across a diverse portfolio of Asia-Pacific jurisdictions.
Later, Lucas took on a leadership role overseeing the company’s content curation team, where he was responsible for news curation and adverse media monitoring.
In his current position, he currently manages the firm’s global Trade Compliance product suite, spearheading innovation and strategic growth.
He has also extensively engaged with financial institutions, corporations and regulators across multiple regional jurisdictions, fostering discussions on export control compliance and further strengthening Dow Jones's expertise in such an increasingly vital and complex area.
PODCAST DISCUSSION. As our guests flesh out, there are several common threads linking the two segments of today’s episode. The first is that of regulatory fragmentation across jurisdictions such as the US, mainland China, Hong Kong and the EU.
There is also the issue of extraterritorial overreach and competition vis a vis China’s export rules versus US crypto laws, coupled with a global push for clarity in fast-moving, high-risk sectors – including the international trade of goods and virtual assets more broadly. Simply put: the heavy geopolitical undertones in both export control and digital asset regulation cannot be avoided as they cast a heavy shadow on the role of trust and credibility – or the lack thereof – in navigating both trade and crypto systems. With that in mind, the podcast begins with Regulatory Ramblings host, Ajay Shamdasani, asking Lucas about the evolving regulatory landscape shaping international trade and its implications for Hong Kong businesses, as well as what the impact of mainland China's new export control regulations on dual-use goods will be. Lucas shares what legal and compliance specialists need to know regarding what regulatory hurdles the firms they serve must adhere to in terms of sanctions and export control regulations, including best practices for enhancing due diligence procedures to mitigate trade-related risks. Following that, Joshua and Melizza share their thoughts on what the new Stablecoin Ordinance will mean for Hong Kong, as well as the importance of recent US. Securities and Exchange Commission clarifications on meme coins and how that may influence legal, risk and compliance strategies for developers and investors. The three of them go on to discuss the key operational and regulatory challenges stablecoin issuers face under Hong Kong’s new licensing regime, and how the US GENIUS and STABLE Acts might reshape the US stablecoin market and influence global regulatory approaches. Indeed, something worth asking - and which Joshua and Melizza - do not shy away from commenting on is whether the relatively ‘light touch’ regulation of meme coins encourage innovation or exposes investors to undue risk? The conversation concludes with a chat about how projects can effectively balance innovation with regulatory compliance amid differing US and APAC frameworks. Most memorable is how Melizza distinguishes between Web 3.0 and Web3.
Regulatory Ramblings podcasts is brought to you by The University of Hong Kong - Reg/Tech Lab, HKU-SCF Fintech Academy, Asia Global Institute, and HKU-edX Professional Certificate in Fintech, with support from the HKU Faculty of Law.
Useful links in this episode:
You might also be interested in:
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Must have book by Ross Buckley, Douglas Arner & Dirk Zetzsche - FinTech: Finance, Technology & Regulation
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Building Better Financial Systems: FinTech Sustainability - Research
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HKU-SCF Fintech Academy - website
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Asia Global Institute - website
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Most sought after Fintech course on edX - Introduction to Fintech
Regulatory Ramblings Podcasts List
Regulatory Ramblings Podcast
Welcome to Regulatory Ramblings, a podcast from a team at The University of Hong Kong on the intersection of all things pertaining to finance, technology, law and regulation. Hosted by the HKU Reg/Tech Lab, HKU-Standard Chartered FinTech Academy Asia Global Institute, and the HKU-edX Professional Certificate in FinTech, join us as we hear from luminaries across multiple fields and professions as they share their candid thoughts in a stress-free environment - rather than the soundbites one typically hears from the mainstream press.
Regulatory Ramblings is a forum for those that appreciate long-form conversation. While it is something that may be regarded as lost art of an older time, it is nonetheless sorely needed in an age when glibness and flippancy pass for analysis in conventional journalism.
Having said that, we are grateful to be able to avail ourselves of modern technological resources to bring you chats with people you are probably not going to hear from elsewhere.
Ajay Shamdasani is a veteran writer, editor and researcher based in Hong Kong. He holds an AB in history and government from Ripon College, JD and MIPCT degrees from the University of New Hampshire Franklin Pierce Law School, and an LLM in financial regulation from the Illinois Institute of Technology’s Chicago-Kent College of Law.
His 15-year long career as a financial and legal journalist began as deputy editor of A Plus magazine – the journal of the Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants. From there, he assumed the helm of Macau Business magazine as its editor-in-chief, and later, joined Asialaw magazine as its deputy editor. More recently, he spent close to seven years as a senior correspondent with Thomson Reuters’ subscription-based trade-wire service Regulatory Intelligence/Compliance Complete (previously called Complinet) in Hong Kong. While there, he covered regulatory developments in that city, as well as Singapore, India and South Korea.
