Bitfire stablecoin push grows despite HK$245M loss

Bitfire stablecoin ambitions are accelerating even as the Hong Kong crypto firm posts a HK$245 million half-year loss.

Bitfire reported a profit warning on May 21 disclosing a net loss of up to HK$245 million ($31.28 million) for the six months through March 2026. The loss is nearly 19 times larger than the HK$12.3 million recorded in the same period a year earlier.

The company blamed the widening loss primarily on a HK$152 million value decline on held crypto assets. Rising expenses tied to professional services, customer capabilities and research and development also contributed to the shortfall.

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Why Bitfire is accelerating its stablecoin push despite mounting losses

Bitfire CEO Livio Weng has described stablecoins as a “core pillar” of Hong Kong’s Web3 ecosystem and said the firm will prioritise integrating compliant Hong Kong stablecoins into its clearing and settlement systems.

The company has onboarded hundreds of institutional and ultra-high-net-worth clients since its August 2025 strategic upgrade, all of whom have expressed demand for stablecoin access.

Hong Kong’s HKMA awarded its first batch of stablecoin issuer licences in April 2026, with approval granted only to HSBC and Standard Chartered Bank. That restricted rollout positions Bitfire as a potential integration partner for compliant stablecoins rather than an issuer itself. Bitfire operates under SFC Types 1, 4, and 9 licences plus a Trust and Company Service Provider licence.

What the stablecoin opportunity looks like for Bitfire

Hong Kong’s regulatory framework creates a compliance-bounded market that larger global exchanges cannot easily enter. Bitfire’s positioning as a licensed virtual asset manager serving institutional clients gives it a structural advantage in introducing compliant stablecoins to that client base. Crypto.news has reported on the HKMA’s push to tighten virtual asset dealer and custody rules alongside the stablecoin licensing regime.

Bitfire’s spending blitz on professional services and R&D suggests it is building infrastructure to service institutional stablecoin demand that cannot yet be fully captured under Hong Kong’s restricted rollout pace. Crypto.news has also tracked Hong Kong’s effort to deepen institutional engagement across all licensed virtual asset platforms.