Hong Kong digital tech park Cyberport has partnered with R3, a distributed ledger and blockchain software development company, for its accelerator programme Block adVenture where so far 10 teams have been selected. The three-month startup programme focusing on blockchain technology received applications from diverse industries, including payments, wealth management, gaming, entertainment and Chinese medicine supply chain.

It’s the latest move by Cyberport and is part of the digital tech park’s ongoing effort to expand its footprint in blockchain, one of its key technology clusters. Block adVenture is a new programme launched in November 2020 by Cyberport in collaboration with industry leader R3 and fintech consultancy firm Forms Syntron (Forms HK). The programme aims to help young startups validate their business ideas and accelerate their product-market fit through events, workshops, mentorship and access to investors.

Speaking with Fintech News Hong Kong, Jay Law, Strategic Account Director of R3, said,

“Cyberport is probably the biggest supporter for the blockchain landscape in Hong Kong, as they have dedicated individuals to attend to the subject that demonstrates their serious commitment in advocating the technology,”

 

“R3 is very honored to collaborate with Cyberport together with the young and vibrant Forms HK to co-organize the venture development program Block adVenture. R3 is looking forward to a broader collaboration with them in evangelizing distributed ledger technology (DLT) and blockchain in Hong Kong and beyond.”

R3 is an enterprise software firm that delivers purpose-built distributed ledger technology for all types of businesses in all industries. R3 has been deepening its collaboration with Hong Kong Cyberport to create a gateway to the R3 ecosystem for entrepreneurs and startups. Leveraging the unique position of Cyberport, R3 hopes to further promote blockchain-based solutions to the banking and finance sector in Hong Kong as well as in the Greater Bay Area (GBA).

R3’s Blockchain: 2020 Vision report found that companies will become ‘smarter customers’ for blockchain as they learn from past engagements and ask the ‘right questions’ of their technology providers. Startups need to step up their game and the Block adVenture provides them with an avenue to do so.

The top three winning teams will be nominated to enter the fast track of Cyberport Creative Micro Fund (CCMF) and Cyberport Incubation Programme (CIP). These programmes support young startups and entrepreneurs with up to HK$600,000 in funding and other resources to fuel their growth.

Eric Chan, chief public mission officer of Cyberport, has called blockchain a “ground-breaking technology” with potential applications in multiple industries, and has encouraged startups to actively embrace the technology.

Cyberport, being one of the biggest supporters for the blockchain landscape in Hong Kong, has been doubling down on its blockchain commitment by multiplying initiatives to support promising startups and foster entrepreneurship. The Block adVenture programme follows initiatives including the Blockchain and RegTech Speaker Series, held between August and October last year, as well as Hong Kong Blockchain Week, organized with NexChange, in mid-November.

“Although blockchain has been a buzz word within the Hong Kong fintech space for the past couple of years, adoption has been slow with just a few use cases in production. But the forthcoming licensing regime for virtual asset trading platforms is set to bring blockchain further into the mainstream.”

Law said.

“The new licensing regime and framework announced by the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) of Hong Kong during Hong Kong Fintech Week to regulate all virtual asset trading platforms sends a clear message to the investor that there will be no more grey area and SFC has absolute oversight.”

 

“This will provide greater financial protection to investors, prevent market manipulation, and enable more effective anti-money laundering monitoring which is good for the market in the long run … I foresee the impact [of blockchain] will escalate in 2021, especially when licenses are approved to digital asset exchanges.”

A clear regulation framework will also increase market confidence and attract institutional investors.

“Institutions’ money will start flowing into digital assets, and you will start seeing post-trade processing, clearing and settlement start moving onto the blockchain rather than depending on a central securities depository (CSD),” Law predicts. “Also more trade finance transactions will be done on blockchain propelling it through the pilot phase.”

A fast-growing blockchain community

Widely known for its massive fintech community of over 360 companies, Cyberport has been looking to lure ingenious entrepreneurs and promising startups into its rapidly expanding blockchain ecosystem that spans across a variety of different industries including digital assets, insurance, social services and data analytics.

Featured image: Jay Law, Strategic Account Director of R3