Hong Kong’s Biggest Bank Puts a Stablecoin in 3 Million Wallets
HSBC has launched RedCoin, a Hong Kong dollar stablecoin, on its PayMe app, giving more than 3.3 million users the ability to activate wallets.
The banking giant switched on RedCoin on Friday, a stablecoin designed to always equal one Hong Kong dollar. Users can send the token to friends or spend it at more than 100,000 PayMe merchants.
The token, ticker RCHKD, runs on HSBC's own private ledger rather than a public blockchain like Ethereum. Balances cannot move between PayMe and HSBC's banking app, and the token is not a bank deposit.
HSBC obtained its issuer license from the Hong Kong Monetary Authority in April under a regime that took effect in August 2025. It beat a field of at least 36 companies competing for the license.
Shortly after launch, RedCoin's reserve tracker showed roughly $10.2 million in circulation, backed by $10.4 million held entirely in cash. This is a small fraction of the more than $300 billion market dominated by Tether's USDT and Circle's USDC.
We are excited by the market's interest in HSBC RedCoin. This is only the beginning.
Expanding the Token
HSBC plans to add the token to its HK Mobile Banking app later this year. Customers will be able to buy into a tokenized share class of its Hong Kong dollar money market fund.
Tokenized ownership means a digital token records the asset on a ledger instead of in a traditional registry. The first independent attestation of RedCoin's reserves, an auditor's report confirming the cash is there, is expected after the fourth quarter of 2026.
Other major banks are also exploring similar territory. In September, 21 lenders including Goldman Sachs and Bank of America announced plans for a joint dollar stablecoin, targeting a launch in the first half of 2027.
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