HSBC launches RedCoin, a Hong Kong dollar stablecoin, to 3.3 million PayMe users

24 Oct 2026

24 Oct 2026, 02:09 UTC+02:00

One of the world’s biggest banks has put a stablecoin into an app millions of people already use. HSBC launched RedCoin, a Hong Kong dollar token with the ticker RCHKD, on its PayMe payments app on Friday.

What users get

PayMe has more than 3.3 million users, who will be able to activate a stablecoin wallet in the app over the coming days. RedCoin can be used to send money to friends and family and to pay at more than 100,000 merchants. It is designed to be redeemable one for one for Hong Kong dollars and is fully backed by high quality liquid assets held in separate accounts, according to HSBC. HSBC Digital Assets Custody provides safekeeping.

Later this year HSBC plans to add a RedCoin wallet to its Hong Kong mobile banking app and let customers use the token to subscribe to tokenized investment products, including a new share class of its Hong Kong dollar money market fund. “We will soon add more products, including expanding into wholesale corporate and institutional use cases,” said John O’Neill, HSBC’s managing director for digital assets and currencies.

Hong Kong’s licensed stablecoins

The Hong Kong Monetary Authority granted its first stablecoin issuer licences in April to HSBC and Anchorpoint Financial, a venture led by Standard Chartered with Animoca Brands and HKT. Anchorpoint began a limited rollout of its HKDAP token through HashKey Exchange in August, aimed at institutions and professional investors. HSBC’s launch is the first large consumer rollout under the framework.

Vincent Chok, CEO of FDUSD issuer First Digital, told CoinDesk that integrating stablecoins into existing apps “removes the need for a separate wallet or exchange account.”

What it means for traders

• Bank stablecoins go retail: regulated, bank issued tokens could become on-ramps to crypto markets, though RedCoin is not yet listed on major trading venues.
• Dollar coins still dominate trading: USDT and USDC remain the main quote currencies on exchanges.
• Licensing matters: check which stablecoins and fiat rails your exchange supports in our exchange comparison, and how we rate safety in our testing methodology.

Sources

• CoinDesk: HSBC rolls out its first stablecoin to over 3 million everyday app users
• Cointelegraph: HSBC launches Hong Kong dollar stablecoin for retail payments

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