Hong Kong Sets Clear Timeline for Crypto Asset Tax Regulation: Exchange Trading Data Starting from 2028

[Crypto World] Hong Kong is getting serious this time. On December 9, the Hong Kong government issued an announcement to roll out the OECD’s crypto asset reporting framework.

The timeline is clear: local legislation will be completed next year, in 2028 Hong Kong will start exchanging crypto transaction data with other tax jurisdictions, and in 2029 the new version of the Common Reporting Standard will be fully implemented. Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury Christopher Hui stated that this is to prove Hong Kong’s commitment to international tax cooperation—after all, the city needs to maintain its reputation as a global financial center.

The OECD introduced this framework in 2023, aiming to enable tax authorities worldwide to automatically exchange crypto asset tax information annually. In fact, Hong Kong has already been sharing financial account information with partner jurisdictions since 2018 according to OECD standards—this time, it’s just expanding to include crypto assets.

The public consultation period is now open, and anyone who wants to provide feedback can submit their opinions before February 6 next year. Honestly, once this policy is implemented, it’ll become much harder to keep on-chain transactions hidden.