Chinese tech giants, including Ant Group and JD.com, have halted plans to issue stablecoins in Hong Kong due to government concerns about private sector-controlled currencies. Regulators, including the People’s Bank of China and Cyberspace Administration of China, instructed companies to pause these ambitions. Hong Kong passed a stablecoin bill in May, establishing a licensing regime for fiat-referenced stablecoin issuers. Any entity issuing stablecoins in Hong Kong must obtain a license from the Hong Kong Monetary Authority. Ant Group and JD.com had planned to participate in the pilot stablecoin program, but PBOC officials advised against it, expressing concerns about tech groups issuing currency. Reuters could not verify the report, and the companies involved did not respond to requests for comment. The Hong Kong Monetary Authority declined to comment on market rumors. Stablecoins, a type of cryptocurrency pegged to a fiat currency like the U.S. dollar, are commonly used by crypto traders to transfer funds between tokens.

Read more at Yahoo Finance: Chinese tech giants pause stablecoin plans after Beijing steps in, FT reports