HSBC RedCoin: a Hong Kong Dollar Stablecoin Goes Live on PayMe

On 23 October 2026 HSBC began rolling out RedCoin, its Hong Kong dollar stablecoin, inside PayMe, the bank's payment app, which the South China Morning Post reports has more than 3.3 million users. The launch is phased, so not every user gets it on the first day. RedCoin is issued under a licence from the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, and HSBC's own disclosure put HK$80.58 million of it in circulation on launch day.

Key facts

• What: HSBC RedCoin (RCHKD), a stablecoin referenced to the Hong Kong dollar and redeemable 1:1 for HKD, subject to HSBC's terms.
• When: a phased rollout in PayMe from 23 October 2026.
• Who can use it: existing PayMe users, who update the app and activate a RedCoin wallet — more than 3.3 million people, according to the South China Morning Post's report of 23 October.
• Licence: FRS02, granted by the HKMA with effect from 10 April 2026, the same day Anchorpoint Financial received FRS01.
• Circulation: HK$80.58 million in circulation against HK$81.58 million of reserves held in cash, according to HSBC's RedCoin page as of 23 October.
• Next: a Hong Kong dollar money market fund, bought with RedCoin through the HSBC HK App from HK$100, which HSBC plans before the end of 2026.

What is RedCoin, exactly?

A digital Hong Kong dollar issued by HSBC and held in a wallet inside PayMe.

It can be sent to another person or used to pay a merchant that accepts PayMe; CoinGape puts the number of those merchants at more than 100,000. HSBC says each coin is fully backed by segregated, highly liquid assets, and that the reserves must be worth at least as much as the coins in circulation at all times.

Two things it is not. It is not a bank deposit: HSBC states plainly that RedCoin is not protected by Hong Kong's Deposit Protection Scheme. And it is not a token on a public blockchain. Coins are created and moved by smart contracts on HSBC's own distributed ledger, and they can be reached only through PayMe and, later, the HSBC HK App.

Why is the launch phased?

Because the bank says reliability comes first. Lawrence Li, head of PayMe, said that "the key priority in the first phase is ensuring stable service", according to CoinGape. Access is being switched on gradually rather than for every user at once, and CoinGape reports that merchant settlement initially follows the existing Hong Kong dollar schedules, with faster settlement expected in later phases.

The circulation figure shows how early it is. HSBC's page reported a seven-day increase of HK$79.32 million — almost all of the HK$80.58 million outstanding — so nearly every coin was issued in the week of the launch. HSBC has not published how many users have activated a wallet.

What is the HK$100 fund plan?

The second step. HSBC plans to bring RedCoin into its Hong Kong mobile banking app before the end of 2026, so customers can use it to subscribe to tokenized investments. The first is a Hong Kong dollar money market fund with subscriptions from HK$100. Tokenized gold and funds run by other managers are planned after that, with no dates announced.

The two wallets stay separate. HSBC's FAQ says coins cannot be moved between the PayMe wallet and the banking-app wallet.

How does it fit Hong Kong's rules?

Hong Kong licenses stablecoin issuers through the HKMA under its Stablecoins Ordinance. The HKMA's register lists two licensees, both effective 10 April 2026: Anchorpoint Financial, which is backed by Standard Chartered, and HSBC. The licence carries reserve, redemption and governance requirements, and HSBC says independent attestations of its reserves will follow, the first expected after the fourth quarter of 2026.

It is a separate regime from the United States' GENIUS Act or the EU's MiCA, as the GENIUS Act's stablecoin rules explains: a coin licensed in one jurisdiction is not thereby licensed in another.

What should you check before using a bank stablecoin?

• Know it is not a deposit. Deposit insurance does not cover RedCoin; the reserves and the licence are what stand behind it.
• Read the redemption terms. "1:1, subject to terms" is a promise with conditions, and the conditions are in HSBC's terms and conditions.
• Use the official apps only. HSBC warns that RedCoin exists only in PayMe and the HSBC HK App, and that a token elsewhere claiming a link to HSBC is not its own.
• Wait for the attestation. The first independent report on the reserves is due after the fourth quarter of 2026.

How is this different from a token on a public chain?

RedCoin is a closed system: one issuer, one ledger, two apps. A token on a public EVM network is a contract anyone can hold, read and build on. On Nura Chain, a token is an ordinary ERC-20 contract, as creating an ERC-20 token on Nura Chain describes, and its supply can be read by anyone on the explorer. That openness is a different trade, not a licence: a bridged dollar token on a public chain is a claim on the bridge, not on a bank.

Product details, reserve figures and the licence number are on HSBC's RedCoin page; the licence itself is on the HKMA's register of licensed stablecoin issuers.