Anchorpoint delays retail stablecoin launch

Anchorpoint, a venture led by Standard Chartered, states it is not rushing the launch of its retail stablecoin. The company previously targeted retail access as early as the end of 2026, but CEO Dominic Maffei declined to reaffirm that timeline. Anchorpoint will take a cautious approach to opening its Hong Kong dollar-backed stablecoin to retail users and has declined to confirm a specific launch date.

HSBC recently rolled out RedCoin, a move that influenced Anchorpoint's decision not to rush. HSBC launched its Hong Kong dollar-backed RedCoin on Friday for the 3.3 million users of its PayMe app. Anchorpoint released its institutional stablecoin product in August. Maffei said the company would take a prudent approach to building the market.

Anchorpoint grew out of a partnership between Standard Chartered, Animoca Brands, and telecommunications provider HKT. The partnership was announced in February 2025, following the companies' joint participation in Hong Kong's stablecoin issuer sandbox in July 2024. Animoca Brands brings blockchain expertise and industry network to the venture, helping develop uses for the stablecoin across the Web3 ecosystem.