The China International Finance Forum · Hong Kong Summit was held on November 6, 2025, under the theme "A New Financial Ecosystem in a Changing World: Openness, Innovation, and Sustainability."

The roundtable discussion on "Compliance and Innovation in Digital Asset Trading Platforms" was moderated by Cai Quan, Chairman & CEO of SparkChain Hong Kong and Founding Co-Chairman of the Hong Kong Blockchain Association. Panelists included Max Rebel, Co-Founder of Polkadot Harbor; Wu Ming, Co-Founder of Conflux; Gu Ronghui, Co-Founder and President of CertiK; Liu Xiaoying, Founding Managing Partner of Eagle Fund; and Feng Yuanlong, RWA Solutions Expert at Ant Digital Technologies.

Below are highlights from the discussion:

**Moderator Cai Quan**: "As Chairman & CEO of SparkChain Hong Kong and Founding Co-Chairman of the Hong Kong Blockchain Association, I’m honored to lead this discussion. Today, we focus on how digital asset trading platforms can balance compliance and innovation amid the market’s shift from rapid growth to regulated development. Platforms must serve as core hubs while meeting user demands for asset diversity and transaction efficiency. Exploring innovations like cross-chain optimization and derivatives iteration within regulatory frameworks is key."

Cai also highlighted SparkChain’s recent milestones, including the launch of its international super node in Hong Kong on October 22, 2025. The platform, initiated in August 2020 under China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, has expanded to Macau and Malaysia, with partnerships involving Siemens, SAP, and Panasonic. Hong Kong’s node aims to bolster supply chain services, digital governance, and Web3 innovation, leveraging the city’s financial hub status for global data infrastructure.

**Max Rebel, Co-Founder of Polkadot Harbor**: Rebel noted the varying regulatory approaches worldwide, with China being conservative and Dubai the most open. Hong Kong, he argued, occupies a unique position—bridging China’s financial ambitions with global innovation. He advocated for bolder steps, such as integrating stablecoins into Hong Kong’s central settlement system (e.g., FPS), akin to the U.S. Federal Reserve’s approach. He also emphasized the potential of tokenized real-world assets (RWAs), citing BlackRock and JPMorgan’s advancements.

Rebel praised Hong Kong’s new stablecoin regulations as a competitive boost, revealing Polkadot Harbor’s designation as a strategic enterprise by Hong Kong’s Financial Services and Treasury Bureau. He stressed the need for fast, low-cost, and risk-free stablecoin payments to gain user trust, announcing Polkadot Harbor’s migration to an asset-centric model for enhanced efficiency.

A live poll showed limited audience engagement with cryptocurrencies, prompting Rebel to simplify concepts: "Bitcoin is essentially ‘aircoin,’ but its scale now lends it legitimacy."

*(To be continued...)*