• ProDigital Future, a new Hong Kong-based equity fund, has raised $30 million and plans to raise $100 million by the end of 2023.
• The fund will focus on early-stage Web3 companies in the regional market.
• The government of Hong Kong recently proposed a licensing regime for cryptocurrency exchanges, set to take effect in June.
Hong Kong Fund Plans to Raise $100 Million for Crypto Investment
A new Hong Kong-based equity fund has finished its half-year fundraising period with about $30 million and plans to raise a total of $100 million by the end of 2023. The ProDigital Future fund is led by Ben Ng, a partner at Hong Kong-based equity firm SAIF Partners, and Curt Shi, a long-time tech investor from China. Sunwah Kingsway Capital Holdings and Golin International Group have already supported the fund. So far, the fundraising process has been “relatively smooth,” although investors are cautious about putting their money into crypto projects.
Fund Focus
ProDigital Future will aim at early-stage Web3 companies oriented at the regional market but intends to also be present in Australia and Singapore as well as Europe and the United States. The fund has already invested in six digital asset projects with metaverse company GigaSpace and One Future Football, an Australian digital football league currently operating in stealth mode.
Regulatory Overview
The government of Hong Kong floated an idea last October 2022 to introduce its own bill to regulate crypto. On Feb. 20, 2021 it released a proposal for a licensing regime for cryptocurrency exchanges that is set to take effect in June 2021. This regulatory framework demands that potential market players meet several prerequisites such as having safe custody of assets as well as adhering to Know Your Customer (KYC), Anti Money Laundering (AML) and Combating Financing Terrorism (CFT) regulations.
Investors Involved
Hong Kong investors along with some family offices from China, Australia and Singapore have participated in ProDigital Future’s fundraising process so far.
Conclusion
As Hong Kong continues opening up access to its crypto market, ProDigital Future is paving its way with ambitious plans for capital raising while keeping investors’ safety first through regulatory compliance requirements such as KYC/AML/CFT regulations .