Hong Kong's crypto industry professionals have recently been deeply concerned about the CARF regulations. Although this new regulation seems to aim at standardizing the market, it could actually cause more trouble for businesses—rising operational costs, blurred legal boundaries, fines easily reaching millions, who dares to take risks?

Currently, the industry's most voiced demands are as follows. First, the scope of privacy protection must be clearly defined to prevent companies from repeatedly falling into traps; second, the penalty mechanism should be tiered, as imposing heavy fines for mistakes is unreasonable; the API reporting standards also need to be unified and clarified, as each exchange's understanding varies; finally, a buffer period must be provided for the industry, and policies should not be enforced fully the day after they are announced.

Ultimately, good regulation should protect the market without stifling innovation. If rules are too rigid, they might push compliant companies to move elsewhere. Hong Kong needs to find a balance.