Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) added cryptocurrency exchange MEXC to its warning list on March 15.
MEXC is actively promoting its services to Hong Kong-based investors despite not being licensed by the SFC nor having applied for a virtual asset trading platforms (VATP) license to operate in Hong Kong, according to the FSC’s statement.
“Under the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing Ordinance, it is an offense to carry on a business of providing a virtual asset service (i.e., operating a virtual asset exchange) in Hong Kong and/or actively marketing such services to Hong Kong investors without a license.”
Cointelegraph has approached MEXC for comment.
The securities regulator also warned investors against trading digital assets on unregulated exchanges, as “investors may risk losing their entire investment held on the platform if it ceases operation.”
The financial watchdog’s warning comes a day after the SFC added Bybit crypto exchange to its warning list. The warning list currently includes 20 crypto exchanges.
MEXC is the world’s 11th-largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, with a 24-hour volume of over $2.19 billion, according to CoinMarketCap data. The exchange averages over three million weekly visits and offers access to 1,942 cryptocurrencies.
Hong Kong’s SFC has previously blocked fake websites that impersonate major local crypto exchanges. On March 4, the SFC issued a warning against multiple suspicious websites impersonating two licensed crypto trading platforms, OSL Digital Securities and Hash Blockchain Limited, also known as HashKey.
Some of the previously blocked fake websites also impersonated the MEXC exchange. The SFC has blacklisted eight domains impersonating MEXC on Feb. 9.
Related: MEXC says ‘clawbacks’ only affect delinquent traders as users report missing funds
The deadline for crypto exchanges operating in Hong Kong to file for a VATP application lapsed on Feb. 29. Unlicensed firms must cease operations in the Special Administrative Region by May 31. Likewise, exchanges whose VATP applications are rejected by the SFC must also leave the city within three months.
So far only two crypto exchanges in Hong Kong are licensed by the SFC, including the OSL exchange, which received a license on Dec. 15, 2020, and HashKey Exchange, which was licensed on Nov. 9, 2022.
Related: Hong Kong begins phase 2 of CBDC pilot
