Hong Kong’s securities regulator said 11 cryptocurrency exchanges are a step closer to obtaining licenses, one year after rolling out a digital-asset rulebook to try and foster a hub for the industry. Applicants including Crypto.com and Bullish are “deemed to be licensed,” the Securities & Futures Commission’s website showed Saturday. Those venues are among platforms on the list with notable trading volumes globally. Prominent digital-asset outfits such as OKX and Bybit, which regularly command big chunks of activity, withdrew bids for permits. Binance Holdings Ltd., the world’s largest exchange, didn’t apply, nor ... (full story)