From Zero to One: Futu's First Year of Crypto.
Written by Zhou Zhou, Foresight News
Futu, China's largest internet brokerage with 27 million registered users, is writing the first model for the cryptocurrency transformation of Chinese (Hong Kong) brokerages through its exploration in the Crypto field.
On the evening of August 20, 2025, with the release of Futu's second - quarter financial report, the market was able to have a clearer understanding of its layout and progress in the cryptocurrency business. Since officially launching Crypto trading services in August 2024, Futu has rapidly expanded its crypto business to Hong Kong, Singapore, and the United States in just one year, achieving full - scale business development in the three regions.
In Hong Kong, Futu has been providing Crypto trading services to local residents for one year, and the VATP license it applied for is expected to be approved for formal operation in the next six months. In Singapore, Futu Moomoo has also been providing Crypto trading services to Singaporean residents for one year and is currently the only licensed internet brokerage in Singapore to offer Crypto trading. In the United States, Futu began rolling out cryptocurrency trading services in most states of the US in June this year, supporting spot trading of over 30 mainstream cryptocurrency pairs.
Hong Kong, Singapore, the United States... Futu is trying to quickly obtain cryptocurrency operation licenses globally to expand this new business line.
Through this year's exploration, Futu has become one of the earliest and most in - depth Chinese brokerages to explore the Crypto business. During the Q2 2025 earnings conference call, an executive of Futu said, "As of the end of the second quarter of 2025, the balance of Futu's Crypto - related assets reached approximately HK$4 billion, and the highest average daily trading volume reached US$40 million."
Futu's Crypto Landscape
As global brokerages are increasingly laying out in the cryptocurrency business, this field is gradually becoming a new trend in the financial industry. Take Robinhood, the largest internet brokerage in the United States, for example. It launched cryptocurrency trading services as early as 2018, providing users with channels to buy and sell Bitcoin, Ethereum, and various mainstream digital assets.
As of the second quarter of 2025, Robinhood's cryptocurrency revenue surged by approximately 98% year - on - year, reaching US$160 million, while the company's total revenue was US$989 million. It can be seen that the cryptocurrency business has become an important and non - negligible part of the revenue structure of US internet brokerages such as Robinhood, indicating that the cryptocurrency transformation of brokerages is accelerating.
Seeing the influx of US brokerages, Hong Kong brokerages are also accelerating their entry into this track. According to statistics, as many as 40 Hong Kong brokerages have successfully upgraded their "Type 1 license" to engage in virtual asset businesses. Among them, Futu Niuniu and Shengli Securities are outstanding.
Futu's layout in Crypto is very extensive. Just in the Hong Kong market, it involves: the upgrade of the Type 1 license (Hong Kong users can buy cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana on the Futu App), the application for the VATP license (which can serve both retail users and institutional clients), the tokenized money fund of Huaxia Fund (RWA and cryptocurrency - based wealth management), and stablecoins (Futu invested HK$440 million in Tianxing Bank to participate in the stablecoin business layout), etc.
Especially the VATP license is a hot topic in the market. Once approved, it means that Futu will have a compliant cryptocurrency exchange in Hong Kong. An executive of Futu said during the Q2 earnings conference call, "Exchange, as an entrance to cryptocurrencies, we believe that in addition to spot trading, there may be a lot of room for monetization in the future, such as staking and derivative businesses."
"Obtaining the VATP license can not only do business with retail users, saving us some upstream clearing and settlement costs, but also provide upstream services for institutional clients such as brokerages," the executive said.
Therefore, although the current Crypto business accounts for less than 1% of Futu's overall business volume, it has received considerable attention within Futu. During the Q2 2025 earnings conference call, both institutional investors such as Morgan Stanley and Futu executives frequently mentioned the Crypto business.
A Hundred Schools of Thought Contend, What Are Futu's Advantages?
At present, there are quite a few companies that have emerged in the Hong Kong Crypto market, including HashKey, OSL, Shengli Securities, and Tiger Brokers. According to incomplete statistics, more than 50 companies can provide cryptocurrency services to retail users.
So, what are Futu's advantages?
First of all, Futu's user base is one of its biggest advantages in entering the Crypto field. Futu has 27.12 million registered users, and the number of "asset - holding customers" increased by 41% year - on - year, reaching 2.88 million. And this number is still growing. During the Q2 2025 earnings conference call, an executive said that in the first half of 2025, Futu added 460,000 "asset - holding customers."
Secondly, Futu's own revenue and profitability are continuously providing support and guarantee for its new business. According to the second - quarter financial report of 2025, Futu achieved revenue of up to HK$5.3 billion, a year - on - year increase of approximately 70%, and a net profit of HK$2.6 billion, a year - on - year increase of 113%. Futu also said that it will further increase its investment in crypto and AI products in the future.
Futu's internet gene is highly compatible with the cryptocurrency business. As an internet brokerage, Futu is good at using new technologies and exploring new assets, thus attracting more retail users from traditional brokerages and achieving double growth in user scale and business innovation. Robinhood's success in the cryptocurrency field also confirms the development potential of internet brokerages in this area.
In addition, Futu has long been laying out the global market through stock trading, which also lays the foundation for the future growth of its Crypto business.
An executive of Futu said, "The Hong Kong and Malaysian markets contributed more than half of the new asset - holding customers in the second quarter. Other customer growth mainly includes the Singapore, US, and Japanese markets."
It is understood that apart from the Hong Kong - based market, Singapore and the United States are Futu's largest overseas markets, followed by the rapidly expanding Malaysian and Japanese markets, and Australia and Canada also show steady growth momentum.
"We will also launch the functions of depositing and withdrawing coins in Singapore and the United States in the second half of the year. This function has been launched in Hong Kong." Futu's trading framework can be adapted to crypto businesses around the world, reducing the marginal cost effect and increasing profits.
In July 2025, Futu Moomoo launched cryptocurrency trading in most states of the US, supporting spot trading of over 30 mainstream cryptocurrency pairs.
Behind Futu's All - in, the "Cryptocurrency Transformation" of Hong Kong Brokerages
Futu's full - scale entry into cryptocurrencies is also a microcosm of the "cryptocurrency transformation" of Hong Kong brokerages.
Since the Hong Kong Virtual Asset Declaration in 2022, in the past three years, the Hong Kong Crypto industry has formed a huge industry with more than 40 brokerages, more than 35 fund companies, and more than 10 large - scale banks and large accounting firms involved in virtual asset businesses. With the official implementation of the Hong Kong stablecoin policy in August this year, it is predicted that a number of stablecoin companies and upstream and downstream enterprises will emerge in Hong Kong.
As a new type of financial asset, cryptocurrencies have been widely recognized and accepted by the Hong Kong financial industry. As an emerging track, the value of its market increment is difficult to simply estimate. This not only provides an opportunity for local small and medium - sized brokerages in Hong Kong to overtake on a curve but also opens up new growth space for internet brokerages.