Hong Kong has announced plans to introduce a gold-backed token representing a standard 400-ounce bullion bar as the city expands blockchain-based trading and settlement services.
Summary
- Hong Kong has announced plans for a gold token representing a standard 400-ounce gold bar.
- The token will use the city’s HAU gold price reference and support a planned interbank trading project.
- Officials have not named the token’s issuer, custodian, blockchain or launch date.
- A separate gold transaction involving Zhaojin Mining and China Construction Bank (Asia) has already taken place.
- Unlike PAXG and XAUT, the proposed Hong Kong token has not been confirmed for retail investors.
During Hong Kong FinTech Week on November 2, Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury Christopher Hui Ching-yu outlined an interbank gold-token project that would use the city’s HAU gold price reference.
The proposal builds on Project Ensemble, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority’s (HKMA) initiative for testing digital assets and tokenized bank deposits.
Hong Kong plans gold token for interbank trading
A standard 400-ounce gold bar is commonly used in institutional bullion markets, where banks and professional traders handle large transactions.
Hong Kong’s proposed token would digitally represent a bar of that size, while HAU would provide the pricing reference.
“The government will also undertake an interbank tokenization project for gold transactions very soon,” Hui said during the event.
The announcement did not identify which institution would issue the token, where its physical gold would be stored or which blockchain would record ownership.
Officials have not specified whether participating institutions could divide a token into smaller units or exchange it directly for physical bullion.
Retail access remains another unanswered question. The announced project concerns interbank transactions, with no public offering or individual investor eligibility rules disclosed.
Andrew Fei, a partner at law firm King & Wood, described tokenized gold as a meeting point between Hong Kong’s digital-asset and gold-trading priorities.
Speaking to the South China Morning Post, he said Project Ensemble could help move tokenized gold beyond experimental transactions into commercial use.
Banks complete separate tokenized gold transaction
Hong Kong’s latest announcement follows a completed gold transaction involving several financial institutions under Project Ensemble.
On November 2, Ant Digital Technologies said its Anvita TaaS platform had supported a cross-bank transaction involving tokenized gold and bank deposits.
Zhaojin Mining issued the gold, while China Construction Bank (Asia) handled custody and payments.
The Bank of East Asia and Jetco participated as receiving institutions.
Participants used HAU as their reference price, with digital records tracking ownership transfers involving London Good Delivery gold.
The transaction used tokenized bank deposits for payment through Hong Kong’s existing settlement infrastructure.
Anvita TaaS operates using Ant Digital’s Jovay Layer 2 blockchain technology.
However, the completed transaction is separate from the newly proposed 400-ounce token. Its participating companies and blockchain have not been confirmed as providers for the future project.
The HKMA announced another upgrade on November 2, enabling participating banks to settle tokenized deposit transactions around the clock using tokenized central bank money.
The EnsembleTX pilot now includes 12 banks and 20 industry participants.
Hong Kong expands digital gold and metals projects
Gold tokenization is one part of Hong Kong’s continuing work on commodity trading infrastructure.
In October, the government confirmed that its central clearing system for over-the-counter gold transactions had entered trial operations.
The system records settlement activities digitally and connects with designated vaults to track physical gold deposits and withdrawals.
Officials expect to launch the clearing system during the first quarter of 2027.
Meanwhile, Standard Chartered has launched tokenized bank deposits for corporate customers in Hong Kong, using EnsembleTX to support institutional transfers.
The London Metal Exchange has been exploring tokenization of warehouse metals, potentially allowing traders to borrow against physical inventories.
Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing is preparing a separate warehouse-receipt financing pilot for 2027.
In another digital gold project, crypto.news previously reported that the Hong Kong Gold Exchange was working with Chainlink to support transfers of its XGZ token across blockchain networks.
Each XGZ token represents one gram of physical gold, making its unit size different from the proposed institutional 400-ounce product.
How Hong Kong’s gold token compares with PAXG and XAUT
Existing products such as Paxos Gold (PAXG) and Tether Gold (XAUT) offer investors blockchain-based exposure to physical bullion.
Paxos states that each PAXG token represents one fine troy ounce of gold held in professional vaults in London.
Eligible holders can purchase fractional amounts, while physical redemption remains subject to the company’s requirements.
Tether’s XAUT similarly represents one fine troy ounce of gold, with its underlying bullion held in Switzerland.
Both products support smaller holdings than a complete 400-ounce bar.
Hong Kong’s proposed token currently has a different purpose: settling gold transactions between financial institutions.
Neither the HKMA nor Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission has announced a retail distribution framework for that project.
Separately, China CITIC Bank International and the Hong Kong Gold Exchange completed a pilot using tokenized bank deposits to settle gold trades.
China CITIC Bank International said it was targeting 2027 for a commercial settlement service following the pilot.
