Shares of HashKey Holdings fell about 5% in their Hong Kong trading debut, a muted reception that underscores investors’ wariness of the exchange’s business model despite its dominant position in the city’s regulated crypto market.
The stock opened during trading, falling to around HK$6.34 by mid-morning. The drop followed the release of prospectus data earlier in December that showed heavy losses but rapid growth in users and activity.
The listing comes at a time when bitcoin has retreated from its record high earlier this year, to trade around $87,000, reducing the valuation of most crypto-linked stocks globally.
HashKey controls about three-quarters of Hong Kong’s licensed crypto trading market and processed more than $US81.8 billion (HK$638 billion) in volume by 2024, according to the prospectus.
But its ultra-low-fee strategy, with fees largely below 0.1%, has kept revenue growth far behind operating costs tied to licensing, storage, compliance and infrastructure. The exchange reported cumulative net losses of around $385 million (HK$3.0 billion) between 2022 and mid-2025, with monthly cash burn remaining high.
Investors appear to be considering whether scale alone can correct this imbalance. Early trading suggests the market is reserving judgement, waiting for clearer evidence that fees can rise or that higher-margin services can make a meaningful contribution.
The weak debut could also reflect a narrower growth narrative. HashKey has retreated from offshore retail markets, is closing its Bermuda-registered entity and is increasingly tied to Hong Kong’s regulatory framework, making its prospects more dependent on local politics, institutional participation and capital market activity than broader crypto cycles.
HashKey is a competitor to CoinDesk’s parent company, Bullish.
(UPDATE, December 15, 2:52 UTC): Adds additional broader market context.
