Is the crypto stock wind blowing through state-owned securities firms? On June 25, 2025, Guotai Junan International, listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, stated that it obtained an upgraded license from the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission, enabling virtual asset trading services for clients. After the news was released, Guotai Junan International's stock price rose from 1.4 HKD to 3.7 HKD, nearly doubling in one day.
It's important to note that Guotai Junan International is a brokerage firm, merely providing a crypto service channel. Its connection to cryptocurrencies is far from being as close as a "crypto stock".
Why would a license upgrade cause such an exaggerated stock price surge? Some even believe that the national team is entering the crypto industry? This article will analyze the details.
1、What Happened?
On June 25, 2025, Guotai Junan International officially announced: It has been approved to provide virtual asset trading services, including cryptocurrencies. Clients will be able to directly trade Bitcoin, Ethereum, and stablecoins like USDT on its platform.
Key points of the announcement:
On June 24, Guotai Junan International, a subsidiary of Guotai Haotong Group (stock code: 1788.HK), was officially approved by the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission to upgrade its existing securities trading license to provide virtual asset trading services and advice. After this license upgrade, clients can directly trade cryptocurrencies (such as Bitcoin, Ethereum) and stablecoins (such as USDT) on the Guotai Junan International platform. Guotai Junan International has become the first Hong Kong-based Chinese securities firm to provide comprehensive virtual asset trading services, covering virtual asset trading, advisory services, and issuance and distribution of virtual asset-related products, including over-the-counter derivatives.
Affected by this positive news, Guotai Junan International's stock price soared, with a closing surge of 198.39%, rising from an opening price of 1.420 HKD to a high of 3.700 HKD, creating a 10-year high.
Guotai Junan International is a brokerage firm that does not provide matching services. Later that afternoon, the market discovered that Hashkey Exchange, a compliant Hong Kong exchange, provides its matching services. The token HSK issued by Hashkey Group subsequently surged by 70%.
As mentioned earlier, Guotai Junan International is just a brokerage firm providing a virtual currency service channel. Why did the market react so dramatically?
The root cause lies in Guotai Junan International's background, which provides the market with enormous imagination space.
2、Who is Guotai Junan International? Its Background Sparks Imagination
Guotai Junan International is the first Chinese securities firm approved by the China Securities Regulatory Commission to list on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange's main board through an IPO. Established in Hong Kong in 1993, it became the first company approved by the CSRC to list in Hong Kong in 2010. Its core businesses include (i) brokerage; (ii) corporate finance; (iii) loans and financing; (iv) asset management; (v) financial products; (vi) wealth management. It is a constituent stock of the Hang Seng Composite Index, Hang Seng Composite Small Cap Index, FTSE Hong Kong Index, and FTSE Hong Kong Ex-H Shares Index.
According to public information, the absolute major shareholder of Guotai Junan International is Guotai Haotong Group, China's largest securities firm, with a stake of 74%.
Guotai Haotong Group was formed by the merger and restructuring of domestic top state-owned securities firms Guotai Junan and Haitong Securities, with Shanghai International Group Limited as its controlling shareholder, and the actual controller being the Shanghai State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission. The Shanghai SASAC clearly stated that it will promote Guotai Haotong to become a "main force in building a strong financial nation" and plans to receive 10 billion yuan in state-owned capital support for innovative businesses over the next 5 years.
Guotai Haotong is one of the six financial service enterprises under the Shanghai SASAC.
The merged Guotai Haotong company is powerful. On March 4, 2025, Haitong Securities' A-shares were delisted, and Guotai Junan, as the surviving company, disclosed a reviewed financial report for the 2024 merger simulation. The report shows that in 2024, it achieved operating revenue of 58.646 billion yuan and net profit attributable to the parent company of 9.030 billion yuan. As of the end of 2024, the merged company had total assets of 1.73 trillion yuan and parent company net assets of 328.3 billion yuan, ranking first in the industry in terms of capital strength.
Guotai Junan International has been approved to enter the crypto asset industry. Combining its shareholder background and recent policy combinations from mainland China and Hong Kong (mainland China's reflection on stablecoins, Hong Kong's acceleration of stablecoin development), it inevitably sparks imagination. This is probably why some people believe that the "national team has entered the crypto industry".
No wonder Guotai Junan International's stock price could rise by 2 times in a single day.
3, Guotai Junan International's Early Layout in Crypto
Guotai Junan International's "good hand" actually has traceable origins.
In May 2025, Guotai Junan International stated that according to the SFC's circular on intermediaries' tokenized securities activities, they submitted business plans for tokenized securities distribution and digital bond issuance, which were confirmed by the regulatory authority without further issues. They noted that on January 21, 2025, they submitted a wealth management business plan to the Hong Kong SFC, intending to distribute or provide advice on tokenized securities to clients, covering various types including structured products linked to multiple asset types, SFC-recognized and non-recognized funds, and bonds. The SFC issued a confirmation email on May 7, 2025, with no further questions. Tokenized securities refer to traditional financial instruments managed through distributed ledger technology, essentially traditional securities packaged with tokenization technology.
In August last year, Guotai Junan International released an unaudited interim financial report, disclosing that the Guotai Junan team was the first to launch structured notes linked to virtual asset spot ETF trading in the Hong Kong market, adding new elements to their diversified product services and actively responding to Hong Kong's Capital Investment Entrant Scheme (CIES). Guotai Junan stated that with the Hong Kong government's proactive policies to promote economic development and attract investments, market expectations for IPO markets are gradually recovering, and local regulations for virtual assets are expected to accelerate, which is beneficial for launching diversified products.
Source: Guotai Junan International Public Account
