Hong Kong's Secretary of Financial Services and Ministry of Finance said that mining is regulated by the localtrade laws and related illegal transactions will be prosecuted.
He reported this in a written responseHong Kong Legislative Council in response to the requested information about the risks and fraudulent activities associated with cryptocurrencies and mining. In addition, the Council was interested in whether mining is regulated in accordance with the Trade Descriptions Ordinance (TDO), a bill passed in 2012 that provides fines for fraudulent trading practices in Hong Kong.
Secretary James Lau replied thatThe sale of mining equipment and any other products related to virtual assets is subject to TDO. The fraudulent actions he mentions in this regard include misleading trade descriptions, as well as aggressive business practices and improper payment acceptance.
According to Lau, illegal mining of cryptocurrenciesmay be penalized with a fine of $ 500,000 or imprisonment for five years. The secretary also mentioned one specific case of fraud when the Hong Kong police arrested three people who allegedly lured 20 victims of an investment worth more than 3.7 million Hong Kong dollars (about $ 471,400) from 20 victims.
Earlier, the Hong Kong regulator banned investments in STOs for investors with a portfolio of less than $ 1 million.
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