HSBC RedCoin, the bank’s first stablecoin, went live on PayMe by HSBC on October 23, 2026. The token carries the ticker RCHKD, is denominated in Hong Kong dollars and is issued under Hong Kong’s Stablecoins Ordinance by The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation, according to HSBC’s launch announcement.
The launch follows the Hong Kong Monetary Authority’s first licensing round: the HKMA granted HSBC a stablecoin issuer licence on April 10, 2026, together with Anchorpoint Financial Limited. HSBC’s licence number in the HKMA register is FRS02.
What PayMe users can do
HSBC says more than 3.3 million PayMe users will be able to activate a stablecoin wallet inside the app “in the coming days.” At launch the wallet supports two uses:
- Peer-to-peer payments: sending RCHKD to friends and family through PayMe.
- Peer-to-merchant payments: paying with RCHKD at more than 100,000 merchants that accept PayMe.
Before launch, HSBC ran staff pilots with nearly 100 users covering the full journey, from minting and wallet activation to live transfers. Safekeeping of the tokens is provided by HSBC Digital Assets Custody, the bank says.
The announcement does not name the blockchain RCHKD runs on, and it gives no redemption fees or minimum amounts. We have left those details out until HSBC publishes them.
What comes next
HSBC says that later in 2026 it plans to:
| Plan | What HSBC says |
|---|---|
| HSBC HK Mobile Banking App | Stablecoin wallet functionality added to the bank’s main app |
| Tokenised investments | Customers subscribe to tokenised products using RCHKD, including a soon-to-be-launched share class of HSBC’s HKD money market fund |
| Wholesale use | Expansion into corporate and institutional use cases, according to John O’Neill, HSBC’s managing director for digital assets and currencies |
These are plans with no fixed dates. The investment feature was described in HSBC’s April statement as subject to regulatory approvals.
A licensed bank, a stablecoin and a tokenized deposit
RedCoin is a stablecoin issued by a bank, which is not the same instrument as the bank’s tokenized deposits. In Hong Kong HSBC already runs a Tokenised Deposit Service for wholesale payments, alongside HSBC Orion digital bonds and the HSBC Gold Token. Our explainer on stablecoins, CBDCs and tokenized deposits sets out who issues each and what backs it.
When the licence was granted, HSBC said each stablecoin it issues would be “fully backed at all times by high-quality, liquid assets held in segregated accounts.” That is the issuer’s statement; the October announcement does not include a reserve report.
The HKMA’s own commentary on the first licences says licensed issuers must manage and safeguard reserve assets, keep redemption arrangements and verify the identity of stablecoin holders, directly or through reliable third parties. It also says it received 36 applications in the first batch and that any further licences would remain “very limited.” Our Hong Kong stablecoin license explainer covers how the regime works, and other non-dollar, non-euro tokens are listed under stablecoins in other currencies.
