The Tencent-backed Chinese online brokerage is planning to launch the feature in select international markets in the second half of 2021.
Futu is applying for «digital currency-related licenses» in the U.S., Singapore and Hong Kong, senior vice president Robin Li Xu told the media on Wednesday during the brokerage's first quarter earnings call.
However, crypto trading will not be offered to its mainland clients. «What we know for sure is that we will not offer digital currency trading services to mainland China users,» Xu said.
China recently reiterated its stance on cryptocurrency and related products and services in a joint notice signed by the country's banking and internet industry associations, saying virtual currencies should not and cannot be used in the market because they’re not real currencies.
Explosive Growth
The platform saw its fifth straight quarter of triple-digit growth in the first quarter of the year, with total revenues increasing 349.4 percent year-on-year to $283.6 million. The number of Futu users globally reached 14 million, with Q1 trading volume soaring to $289 billion.
Futu added 273,000 net paying clients during this period, with more than 70 percent of the increase coming from Hong Kong, Singapore and other overseas markets.
Southeast Asia Ambitions
Earlier this year, Futu opened its regional headquarters in Singapore, where it has rolled out its Gen Z-focused investment platform «moomoo.» The platform said it has growth ambitions in the region, and sees the republic as a «bridge» to the rest of Southeast Asia.
«We are encouraged by what we have achieved in Singapore so far and are confident that Singapore and the broader Southeast Asian market offers a huge runway for growth,» Leaf Hua Li, Futu founder, chairman, CEO and chairman of the technology committee, said in a statement.
