Hang Seng Investment Management launched a physically backed gold ETF that began trading Thursday on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. The ETF tracks the LBMA Gold Price AM to give investors direct exposure to bullion.
The passive fund stores London Bullion Market Association good delivery bars in Hong Kong vaults, with HSBC as custodian (product details noted). It allows in-cash and, in certain cases, in-gold creation and redemption by participating dealers, while retail investors trade units like ordinary shares (product facts listed).
Beyond the listed class, the manager outlined plans for tokenized unlisted units recorded on blockchain infrastructure, with HSBC appointed as tokenisation agent (see the prospectus). “Initially, the Tokenisation Agent intends to utilise Ethereum as the primary blockchain. Other public blockchains with comparable level of security resiliency and distributed ledger technology may be adopted in future,” the document states. (Ed. note: tokenized units will not trade on secondary markets and require approved distributors for subscriptions and redemptions.)
Gold prices surged about 4% on Thursday, pushing spot gold close to $5,530 per ounce (data shows). The launch arrives as major exchanges and banks advance tokenization pilots and infrastructure for digital securities.
