The Monetary Authority on Monday said that locals will soon be able to transfer small amounts of money to mainland accounts through a scheme similar to the Faster Payment System (FPS).

Its chief executive Eddie Yue said officials are working with their mainland counterparts on the details, and a trial scheme could kick off in the middle of next year.

On the sidelines of the Hong Kong Fintech Week, Yue told reporters that cross-border transfers could be done around the clock and could be made to an account that is linked with a mainland phone number, much like how FPS operates.

Separately, the Securities and Futures Commission said it will consult the trade early next year in creating the roadmap for a new regulatory regime for virtual asset trading platforms.

Currently, three such licences have been approved, with the commission saying it is processing more applications.

The SFC’s intermediaries executive director, Eric Yip, said all licensees will be invited to take part in the consultative panel.

"We expect the panel deliberation will result in a comprehensive virtual assets white paper that outlines the development roadmap for products and services, as well as potential enhancement in compliance and risk management," he said in his speech at Fintech Week.

"Next is our work to piece the rest of the regulatory regime puzzle. To establish a comprehensive framework for virtual assets, we should make reference to how trading, settlement, and custody work in the traditional securities market."

Yip added that the commission will step up investor education regarding virtual assets, as well as its monitoring of suspicious platforms and alerting investors of potential harm.