Hong Kong University's business school considers accepting Bitcoin for tuition and donations

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The University of Hong Kong’s (HKU) business school, Asia’s top-ranked institution, is weighing plans to accept Bitcoin and digital assets for tuition and donations, said Professor Hongbin Cai, dean of the HKU Business School and Chair of Economics, at the CryptoFi Forum this week.

“All the technical details have been sorted out. We will take Bitcoin and digital currencies for tuition fees and donations in the future,” he said, urging support for the initiative.

The school confirmed to the South China Morning Post (SCMP) that it is “actively exploring” digital currencies for payments, describing the step as a demonstration of its openness to financial innovation.

A spokesperson for HKU Business School added that it is committed to building a secure, sustainable framework to drive research, innovation, regulation, and the real-world adoption of digital currencies with its partners.

The initiative comes as Hong Kong is actively positioning itself as a global virtual asset hub.

The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) recently launched a stablecoin licensing regime, requiring issuers of fiat-referenced stablecoins to be licensed by the Securities and Futures Commission. The regime encompasses strict compliance standards, including capital requirements, risk controls, redemption rights, and anti-money laundering protocols.

The licensing took effect on August 1, with the first licenses expected to be issued in early 2026.

Binance founder Zhao Changpeng, who attended the HKU forum, previously stated that Hong Kong has the potential to become a major virtual asset hub competing with the US and the United Arab Emirates, provided the government acts quickly.

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