HSBC launches RedCoin for PayMe payments in Hong Kong

HSBC launched its HKD stablecoin RedCoin on PayMe on 23 October, bringing a licensed digital payment token to the app’s more than 3.3 million users. Wallet activation is rolling out in the coming days, with peer-to-peer transfers and payments at more than 100,000 merchants planned through PayMe, according to HSBC’s launch announcement.

How does RedCoin move from HKD into a PayMe payment?

A customer first activates a stablecoin wallet in PayMe, then converts HKD into RedCoin. HSBC says each coin is backed by segregated, high-quality liquid assets and is redeemable one-to-one for HKD, subject to its terms. The token is issued on HSBC’s own distributed ledger technology network. Smart contracts, which are automated programs, create and move the coins according to preset rules.

That makes RedCoin a digital claim designed to track the value of the Hong Kong dollar. Think of it as a digital payment token with a cash reserve behind it: the wallet holds the token, while HSBC’s ledger records its movement. The customer can use the balance to send RedCoin to another person or pay a participating merchant through PayMe. HSBC says a business that accepts PayMe can accept RedCoin through the app.

Who can use RedCoin, and what is available at launch?

PayMe users will be able to activate a wallet in the app as access rolls out. The first uses are person-to-person transfers and person-to-merchant payments. HSBC says it received its stablecoin issuer licence from the Hong Kong Monetary Authority in April 2026; its issuer number is FRS02. The licence places RedCoin within Hong Kong’s stablecoin regime.

HSBC plans to add RedCoin wallet functionality to the HSBC HK Mobile Banking App later this year. The bank also says customers will be able to use the coin to subscribe to tokenised investment products, including a planned share class of its HKD money market fund. Those are future additions, not part of the initial PayMe payment rollout.

What does the backing guarantee, and what does it not?

HSBC’s product information says the reserves must match or exceed the value of coins in circulation, and that it will publish circulation and reserve information. The bank expects its first independent reserve attestation after the fourth quarter of 2026. That reporting can show how the reserve compares with issued tokens; it does not make RedCoin a bank deposit. HSBC says RedCoin is not protected by Hong Kong’s Deposit Protection Scheme.

The rollout therefore adds a bank-issued, HKD-referenced token to a familiar retail app, while its first practical test is whether customers and merchants use it for routine payments. HSBC says it tested the full customer journey, from minting and wallet activation to live transfers, in staff pilots involving nearly 100 users. Its RedCoin product information describes how issuance, wallets and redemption are designed to work.

Sources and documents

• HSBC’s launch announcement — about.hsbc.com.hk
• RedCoin product information — hsbc.com.hk