Hong Kong's first Bitcoin retail store will open for in-store Bitcoin trading

Hong Kong media reported that Hong Kong's first Bitcoin retail store will open on the 28th. The new store is located in Sai Ying Pun, Central and Western District, Hong Kong Island, covers an area of ​​400 square feet (about 37 square meters), and is the brainchild of the Asian New Era Bitcoin trading platform.

According to the Hong Kong South China Morning Post website on February 23, Ken Luo, founder and CEO of Asia New Era, said: "The biggest problem people have now is buying Bitcoin. They have to transfer money in and then trade online. Now, you just walk into the store, hand over the money in one hand, and transfer the Bitcoin to your digital wallet in the other hand."

According to Hong Kong Customs' money laundering regulations, Bitcoin traders must provide their ID and address.

Luo is not the only one in Hong Kong trying to cash in on the bitcoin craze. Three other companies are vying to install Hong Kong's first bitcoin ATM.

Evan Griffin, a spokesman for Hong Kong Bitcoin Group, said the company will import two ATMs from Portugal and will install them in the International Finance Centre and Wan Chai Computer Centre.

Hong Kong Bitcoin ATM Company will install one ATM in Mong Kok, and if it works well, more machines will be installed, with each machine costing between $4,000 and $5,000.

Machine Money, a Las Vegas-based company that makes bitcoin ATMs, had planned to install a bitcoin ATM in Hong Kong last month, but the plan was delayed for unknown reasons.

As with all bitcoin companies, the legality of these practices remains unclear. "We will operate as a vending machine, with no money being exchanged," Griffin said.

Hong Kong customs sources said officials are considering which government department will be responsible for regulating Bitcoin trading.

The government has said bitcoin is not a real currency and companies need to have adequate protections against money laundering and the financing of terrorism.

In addition, the price of Bitcoin is still unstable. On the 22nd, the price of Bitcoin fell below $100 on Mt Gox, the world's largest Bitcoin trading platform. The price of Bitcoin also fell on Asian New Era and Chinese trading platforms. The average price of 1 Bitcoin is about $550.