Hong Kong investment immigration recognizes Bitcoin and Ethereum as proof of assets for the first time

Odaily reports that Hong Kong accountant Xiao Yaohe stated that on February 7, 2025, a client's investment immigration application using HK$30 million worth of Ethereum as asset proof was approved by the Hong Kong Investment Promotion Agency. In October 2024, a client using Bitcoin as asset proof was also approved, which was the first case in Hong Kong of using cryptocurrency as asset proof for investment immigration application. The relevant clients are mostly from mainland China. Xiao Yaohe said that specifically, to apply for investment immigration in Hong Kong, one must first prove to have HK$30 million in assets, and then invest HK$30 million in Hong Kong within half a year, which was mainly in stocks in the past. Whether investing in cryptocurrency ETFs or directly in cryptocurrencies can meet the requirements is still uncertain. The applicant's first visa is issued for two years, and then a 2-2-3 renewal is required to ensure that the corresponding investment assets are still held, in order to finally obtain permanent residency. There are also comments pointing out that in Singapore, cryptocurrencies have always been accepted as asset proof, but the difficulty is that clients cannot provide proof of the initial investment funds for cryptocurrencies. Xiao Yaohe said that after the first application was submitted, the Hong Kong Investment Promotion Agency stated that this was the first time they had received an application using cryptocurrency as asset proof, and it was approved after internal discussions for a month. In addition to the above two successful clients, there are two other clients using cryptocurrency as asset proof who are still in the application process. Clients' crypto assets need to be placed in cold wallets or mainstream exchanges such as Binance.