Public attitude towards cryptocurrency in Hong Kong has taken a dive following the JPEX crypto exchange scandal, according to the initial findings of a new survey.<\/p>\n
The survey, conducted by The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology\u2019s business school, was to understand how public attitudes toward virtual assets may have been impacted by the JPEX scandal. <\/p>\n
The survey was launched on Sept. 28, around 11 days after the allegations toward JPEX were made public, with its results compared against a similar survey conducted between April and May. <\/p>\n
While the survey period is set to end on Oct. 20, the results so far found 41% of respondents would prefer not to hold virtual assets \u2014 up 12 percentage points from a study conducted in May. <\/p>\n
Only 20% of respondents now want to hold virtual assets in the future, down five percentage points from the earlier survey \u2014 another sign that Hong Kongers\u2019 sentiment toward the cryptocurrency industry may be souring.<\/p>\n
HKUST acknowledged the second survey came in the \u201caftermath of an alleged financial fraud\u201d of a cryptocurrency platform last month but didn\u2019t directly refer to JPEX in its report.<\/p>\n
Professor Allen Huang, Associate Dean of HKUST\u2019s business school, said the recent financial incident has brought more public attention to the cryptocurrency industry, resulting in a \u201cmore conservative investment appetite\u201d of late. He added:<\/p>\n
\u201cAs virtual assets become increasingly a part of the digital economy, more educational initiatives are needed to enhance public understanding and awareness of the risks and potentials of this emerging field.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
HKUST\u2019s business school said the survey aimed to gauge the attitudes and views of Hong Kong people on virtual asset investment, based on their experiences, intentions and regulatory safeguards.<\/p>\n