Financial giant HSBC (HSBA) is introducing gold tokenization for ordinary investors in Hong Kong, proudly declaring itself the first bank to tokenize a real-world asset on a blockchain platform targeting the retail market. The HSBC Gold Token, created on the bank’s Orion digital assets platform, is accessible through HSBC Online Banking and the HSBC HK Mobile App, as announced in a press release on Wednesday. Banks and financial institutions are increasingly tokenizing various real-world assets (RWA) on blockchains, including both private ledgers and public networks like Ethereum, in a process known as tokenization.
Galaxy Digital (GLXY), the crypto financial services firm led by Michael Novogratz, concluded 2023 with robust operational performance across its diversified business, according to a research report by broker Canaccord Genuity released on Wednesday. Canaccord highlights that although the fourth quarter showed strength, commentary on the Toronto-listed business’s performance through the end of February was even more positive. Key highlights include nearly doubling assets under management (AUM) from year-end to over $10 billion, equity capital expanding to over $2.1 billion compared to approximately $1.5 billion at the end of the third quarter, and income before tax for the quarter-to-date reaching around $300 million, as stated in the report.
El Salvador, the country that declared bitcoin legal tender in 2021, continues to accumulate bitcoin (BTC) holdings. President Nayib Bukele announced on Monday that the nation now possesses 5,700 bitcoins compared to around 5,690 in mid-March. With bitcoin’s current price slightly above $70,000, El Salvador’s bitcoin reserves exceed $400 million. Earlier this month, Bukele stated that the country’s bitcoin holdings had been moved to cold storage, and the address of its bitcoin wallet was made public. The wallet revealed a holding of just under 5,690 BTC, significantly surpassing previous estimates from public trackers of El Salvador’s holdings.