Vitalik Buterin is invited to visit Hong Kong by its Legislative Council member as the Ethereum co-founder raises concerns for the region’s future crypto policy.
While speaking at the Web3 Transition Summit in Singapore, Vitalik said that crypto projects within Hong Kong will have to be in confidence regarding ‘regulatory and political’ stances.
“Obviously, it’s very friendly now. But the big question that I’m asking and that I think anyone is asking is: how stable is the level of friendliness?” Vitalik said at the event. “That’s where I feel the challenge lies.”
While responding to Vitalik’s take, the member of the Legislative Council, Johnny Ng, published a post citing, “I sincerely invite Mr. Vitalik to come to Hong Kong to understand the situation.”
Johnny Ng said that “I respect his right to speak, but at the same time, I think he does not understand the situation in Hong Kong.”
In the same statement, the council member explained that Hong Kong is a separate ‘special administrative region’ from Mainland China that formulates its own policies and laws, answering Vitalik’s concern that he does not understand the relationship between Hong Kong and the mainland.
“Under ‘one country, two systems’, Hong Kong has legislative power. Every policy or legislation in Hong Kong goes through a period of discussion, including government policy writing, public consultation, discussions in multiple committees of the Legislative Council and the General Assembly, etc,” Ng said.
As a prominent crypto personality, Vitalik’s speech poses credibility, and it could significantly affect Hong Kong’s role. It seems the Hong Kong official believes his views must be addressed. While Vitalik also raised concerns about Hong Kong’s friendliness towards the crypto industry, Ng clarified that policies and laws will not be changed overnight.
The policies will have to pass major social consensus and legal procedures to become effective. “Therefore, I can tell Mr. Vitalik that Hong Kong’s policies are very stable,” he said.
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