HK Web3 Feastival Roundtable Meeting: From “Asset Registration” to “On-Chain Issuance,” Bridging the Final Mile of RWA Cross-Border Compliance

ChainCatcher on-site report, Assistant Dean Tang Bo of the Institute of Financial Studies at Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Fai Si, partner at King & Wood Mallesons, Diao Zhi Hai, head of international wealth management at China International Finance Corporation, and Gavin Wang, managing partner and chief investment officer of SNZ Holding & SNZ Capital, jointly attended the HK Web3 Feastival roundtable discussion, sharing insights on “from asset registration” to “on-chain issuance,” bridging the final mile of RWA cross-border compliance.

Fai Si pointed out that the so-called “from asset registration to on-chain issuance” essentially involves establishing a replicable, sustainable, and compliant channel for “domestic assets and overseas issuance.” He believes that the most critical task at this stage is to first design the transaction structure and the top-level product framework clearly, determining whether the product belongs to equity or debt, as this will directly influence the relevant regulatory authorities, communication methods, and subsequent legal documentation arrangements.

Diao Zhi Hai, from the practical perspective of traditional financial institutions, believes that the biggest challenge now is not an isolated pain point but how to systematically connect multiple compliance nodes to form a truly implementable closed-loop mechanism. He stated that RWA cross-border projects involve not only financial regulation but also cross-border data, cybersecurity, foreign exchange management, and other departmental coordination. Therefore, the initial phase must simultaneously assess whether the underlying assets can be clearly defined and mapped on-chain, who the qualified issuer and controlling entity are, and whether non-financial regulatory requirements throughout the process have been incorporated into the plan.

Gavin Wang approached from the investment and market demand perspective, emphasizing that the global asset on-chain trend is a certainty, and high-quality Chinese assets are still significantly undervalued overseas. This indicates that as long as the cross-border compliance pathways are established, market demand genuinely exists. He believes that investors are most concerned about whether the entire project has clear compliance boundaries and marketability: avoiding red lines, cautiously navigating gray areas, and focusing on assets with more explicit regulatory expectations and easier understanding and acceptance by investors. In the long term, he is optimistic about two types of Chinese cross-border RWA targets: one is large Chinese high-quality assets easily understood by overseas investors, and the other is Chinese industrial assets such as high-end manufacturing, robotics, AI, and pharmaceuticals, which are still undervalued overseas but possess global competitiveness.