HashKey officially listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, Wanxiang's leader secures another IPO

Author: Nancy, PANews

After seven years of entrepreneurship, virtual currency exchange Hashkey has sounded the gong and opened the door to the traditional capital market.

On December 17, HashKey officially listed on the Main Board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. From starting in auto parts to controlling multiple listed companies across various industries, the blockchain field that Wanxiang has been deeply cultivating for years has finally borne fruit. Led by Xiao Feng, known as the “Godfather of Chinese Cryptocurrency,” HashKey has established a compliant listing model for the cryptocurrency industry that can serve as a reference.

Preparing for listing since five years ago, Wanxiang’s major shareholder

“Since its establishment in Hong Kong in 2018, the company has been preparing for a listing.” Now, HashKey has officially listed on the Main Board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, becoming the first publicly issued digital asset company in Hong Kong in the Asian digital asset sector.

After the listing ceremony, Dr. Xiao Feng, Chairman and CEO of HashKey, stated that digital assets are still an emerging industry. To meet the audit and compliance standards required for listing, more time is needed for system and business refinement. Therefore, this successful listing is not accidental but “a natural outcome.”

In Xiao Feng’s view, listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange is a new starting point. Although HashKey originated from a mainland team, it has developed into a Hong Kong-born company. In the future, it will root itself in Hong Kong, adhere to compliance, and implement the strategic direction of “upholding the one country, leveraging the two systems,” continuously enhancing infrastructure capabilities, and strengthening key areas such as security, custody, on-chain execution, and on-chain compliance.

HashKey’s successful listing is the result of Wanxiang Group’s long-term blockchain layout.

HashKey’s first controlling shareholder is Lu Weiding, who owns over 40% of the shares and has absolute control over HashKey. This year, Lu Weiding ranked on Forbes’ global billionaire list with a net worth of $3.8 billion. Born in 1971, Lu Weiding is the son of Lu Guanqun, the founder of Wanxiang Group and a traditional Zhejiang merchant. In the last century, Lu Guanqun led six farmers to start with 4,000 yuan and set up a blacksmith shop, which became the starting point of Wanxiang Group.

Lu Weiding, Chairman and CEO of Wanxiang Group, speaks at the Hong Kong Web3 Festival 2025 In October 2017, after Lu Guanqun passed away, Lu Weiding officially succeeded him as Chairman of Wanxiang Group. As Lu Guanqun’s only son, Lu Weiding served as President of Wanxiang Group at age 23 and as Executive Director of Wanxiang Holdings at age 30. Lu Weiding has made notable achievements in enterprise operations, finance, and capital management, and has orchestrated Wanxiang’s financial layout beyond its industrial roots. Wanxiang Group has holdings or controlling stakes in Wanxiang Trust, Minsheng Renhe Insurance, Zhejiang Merchant Bank, and others.

To date, Wanxiang Group has gradually built a diversified industrial map across automotive, new energy, agriculture, real estate, and finance sectors. In an interview with China Entrepreneur this year, Lu Weiding stated that the company’s operations have always adhered to the philosophy of “wealth disperses and gathers, and the right way to take is to enjoy together.”

Lu Weiding is known for being low-profile, while Xiao Feng acts more like HashKey’s public spokesperson, holding 16.3% of the company’s shares. Xiao Feng joined Wanxiang in 2011 from Bochi Fund, serving as Vice Chairman of China Wanxiang Holdings and responsible for building Wanxiang’s financial sector. In 2015, Wanxiang Group established the Wanxiang Blockchain Laboratory, with Xiao Feng as a founder. That year, Wanxiang invested $500,000 in Ethereum, which was facing funding difficulties at the time. The same year, Wanxiang Holdings invested $50 million to establish Distributed Capital, China’s first venture capital fund focused on blockchain technology companies, co-founded by Vitalik Buterin, who became an advisor in 2018.

It can be said that Xiao Feng is one of the key promoters of early cryptocurrency development and a core figure in Wanxiang’s blockchain strategy. He has actively participated in industry standards setting and policy discussions, promoting the improvement of relevant regulatory frameworks.

After founding HashKey in 2018, Xiao Feng focused on compliance. At the listing ceremony, Xiao Feng stated that HashKey had already “gone global,” with Hong Kong as its base to radiate worldwide. Currently, it has obtained 13 licenses across six jurisdictions. He believes the key to HashKey’s compliance with the strict IPO standards of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange is its consistent adherence to the operating principle of “licensed and regulated,” demonstrating that a compliant route in the crypto asset industry can also lead to success.

Following Wanxiang Qianchao, Chengde Lulian, Wanxiang Denuo, and Shunfa Hengye, HashKey has become another listed company within the Wanxiang ecosystem.

Nearly 400 times oversubscription, raising HKD 1.6 billion against the wind

Before officially launching its Hong Kong IPO, HashKey disclosed its true financials.

According to previous reports by PANews, HashKey’s main businesses include trading facilitation services, on-chain services, and asset management services. However, from 2022 to the first half of 2025, HashKey experienced consecutive losses, totaling over HKD 2.86 billion. Despite this, HashKey’s financial reserves remain relatively sufficient. As of October 31, the company held HKD 1.48 billion in cash and cash equivalents, and digital assets valued at HKD 570 million. (Related: What are the key points hidden in HashKey’s listing documents aiming for Hong Kong’s “Number One Crypto Stock”?)

Regarding profitability, Xiao Feng admitted that the company is in a more investment-focused period. The market is still in a rapid growth stage, and profit is not the most critical operational indicator. The key is whether the company has enough cash reserves to support long-term development. Especially over the next 2 to 3 years, which will be a crucial window for industry growth, insufficient investment could cause missed opportunities for rapid industry expansion. This is also a major reason why the company is not currently seeking profits.

Despite the financial pressure of consecutive losses, market expectations for its listing were not optimistic. However, after the subscription opened, market response significantly exceeded expectations.

The Hong Kong public offering was oversubscribed by approximately 393.7 times, involving about HKD 66.8 billion, attracting over 88,000 investors; international placement was oversubscribed by more than 5.4 times.

HashKey’s cornerstone investors include UBS Asset Management Singapore, Fidelity Funds, CDH, Xinting Funds, Infini, Zhiyuan, Litong, Space Z PTE. LTD., and Shining Light Grace, with a total subscription of USD 75 million. Among them, UBS AM Singapore subscribed USD 10 million, Fidelity Funds and CDH each subscribed USD 5 million, Xinting Funds subscribed USD 15 million, Infini, Zhiyuan, and Litong each subscribed USD 10 million, while Space Z PTE. and Shining Light Grace each subscribed USD 5 million.

From the allocation results, HashKey’s global offering totaled approximately 241 million shares. Of these, 10% were allocated to Hong Kong public offering, amounting to 24,057,200 shares; 90% to international offering, totaling 216,512,800 shares.

HashKey set the issue price at HKD 6.68 per share, with a net global fundraising amount of about HKD 1.48 billion. The company plans to use the proceeds mainly for technology and infrastructure upgrades, market expansion, and ecosystem cooperation.

On the first day of listing, HashKey did not replicate the “stablecoin first stock” Circle’s sharp rise upon listing. Its stock opened at HKD 6.55, slightly below the issue price, with a total market value of about HKD 18.112 billion, surpassing OSL Group, the parent company of Hong Kong’s first compliant virtual asset trading platform OSL Exchange.

HashKey becoming the first crypto asset company listed in Hong Kong not only signifies the maturing of Hong Kong’s virtual asset regulatory framework but also provides an important reference for industry compliance development. In the future, HashKey will still face many challenges, with the primary task likely being turning losses into profits.