Transak Expands into Hong Kong to Support Development & Growth of APAC's Nascent Digital Asset Ecosystem

Miami, Florida,  February 8th, 2024 - Transak, the leading Web3 payments and onboarding solution, announces its strategic expansion into the Asia Pacific (APAC) region with the establishment of an official entity in Hong Kong. Following a successful Series-A funding round mid-2023, led by prominent investors including Animoca Brands, Transak aims to leverage Hong Kong's unique position as a global financial hub and gateway to the APAC market.

This expansion is set to facilitate better access to alternative financial markets across the region, supported by Hong Kong’s forward-thinking regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies and digital assets. Transak plans to enhance local engagement by supporting commonly-used payment methods and integrating with Hong Kong’s Faster Payment Network, aligning with its mission to simplify Web3 accessibility.

Transak is dedicated to reducing the high barrier to entry typical of today's Web3 applications. By simplifying the complexities of crypto transactions, public key cryptography, and smart contracts, Transak's Hong Kong-based entity aims to significantly boost Web3 service adoption across APAC. The company's commitment extends to full compliance with Hong Kong’s regulatory standards, ensuring a smooth and compliant operation.

A testament to its commitment to regulatory excellence, Transak operates across 160+ countries, adhering to an extensive array of regulatory compliances. Notably, Transak was among the first global on/off-ramps to secure an FCA license in the UK in early 2022. By mid-2023, Transak achieved FIU compliance in India and is registered as a Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) in Poland, EU. In the US, Transak is registered as a Money Services Business (MSB) with FinCEN, underscoring its global compliance and operational standards.

Recognizing the complexities of local regulatory compliance, Transak is set to hire a team of local directors and experts in Hong Kong. This initiative will ensure adherence to all local regulations, facilitating active engagement with policymakers and regulatory authorities to shape the future of digital assets in the region.

“Transak sees Hong Kong as an ideal base to launch its operations and propel growth in the APAC region’s dynamic and innovative Web3 economy,” said Transak General Manager of APAC, Maximilian von Hulewicz, in a statement. “Hong Kong is a renowned global financial hub and stands as the gateway to the greater APAC region, boasting one of the world’s most crypto-friendly regulatory regimes. By establishing our base here, Transak is ideally poised to help drive the expansion and adoption of its compliant and user-friendly crypto onboarding services and help usher in the next generation of Web3 enthusiasts.”

Transak's efforts to capitalise on Hong Kong’s strategic APAC position and positive digital asset outlook include key collaborations with local fintech companies and institutions. The company has already gotten the ball rolling in that regard, recently signing on as a member of Web3 Harbour – one of Hong Kong’s leading Web3 communities and ecosystem builders that champions cross-sector industry collaboration – to accelerate the development and adoption of blockchain technologies and the decentralised internet.

"We are thrilled to see Transak expanding into Hong Kong and we are delighted to count it as one of Web3 Harbour’s newest members. This marks a positive milestone in the growth of the digital asset ecosystem in the APAC region,” commented Gary Liu, Chairman, Web3 Harbour.

Transak’s expansion to Hong Kong is also supported by Animoca Brands, which participated in the Series-A funding announced by Transak in May 2023. Yat Siu, co-founder and executive chairman of Animoca Brands, said in a statement, “We’re delighted by Transak’s strategic expansion into Hong Kong, establishing the city as its gateway to the Asia-Pacific region. Having already backed Transak in its Series A funding last year, we’re thrilled to support its endeavor to facilitate seamless user onboarding for potentially over a billion users in Asia as the company seeks to replicate its success from the US, Europe, and beyond.”

About Transak

Transak is a global Web3 payment and onboarding infrastructure provider, facilitating seamless transitions between traditional finance and crypto assets. Web3 platforms using Transak can embed the best way to onboard users by enabling them to buy or sell crypto assets from 150+ countries, as Transak abstracts away the complexity of user KYC, risk monitoring, compliance, payment methods and customer support.

Transak’s product suite includes robust fiat-to-crypto services (on/off-Ramps), a fiat-to-smart-contract solution (Transak One), and a fiat-to-NFT checkout solution. As a regulated, non-custodial payments layer, Transak supports onboarding to 160+ crypto assets across 75+ blockchains. Trusted by over 350 applications, including MetaMask and Coinbase Wallet, Transak makes Web3 applications more accessible.

For more information, visit transak.com or follow on twitter.com/transak.