PANews, June 18 – According to Jinshi reports, Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited (HKEX) and the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) announced today (June 18) the launch of a joint pilot program to study the provision of new digital payment solutions during the after-hours trading session of the derivatives market. This pilot program aims to optimize Hong Kong's capital markets and meet the market's continuously growing demand for after-hours trading. HKEX and the HKMA are studying the introduction of the "Digital Hong Kong Dollar" — a wholesale-level central bank digital currency (CBDC) operating on a 24/7 basis — for the payment of initial margin during the after-hours trading session, in order to enhance the risk management capabilities of the derivatives market outside of bank operating hours, while keeping existing operational processes unchanged.