Hong Kong Regulator Freezes HK$125M in Futu Client Account

Under the restriction notice, issued pursuant to Sections 204 and 205 of the Securities and Futures Ordinance, Futu is prohibited from disposing of, transferring, or processing the assets in the targeted account without prior written consent from the commission. The firm is also required to immediately report any client instructions regarding these funds to the regulator.

The SFC stated that this intervention is necessary to protect the public interest while it examines a scheme allegedly designed to manufacture artificial demand for initial public offering shares. While the commission has disclosed the value of the frozen assets, it has not identified the client entity involved or provided a timeline for the conclusion of the investigation.

This regulatory action comes as Futu continues to integrate digital asset services into its platform. In recent years, the firm has secured approvals to offer cryptocurrency trading and securities-backed financing for digital asset transactions. Despite these expansions into the virtual asset space, the current freeze remains strictly confined to the suspected conduct of a single customer rather than the firm’s licensed activities.