A recent report commissioned by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) had highlighted a series of recommendations to promote the development of regtech talent in Hong Kong.

As laid out in the HKMA’s white paper entitled “Transforming Risk Management and Compliance: Harnessing the Power of Regtech”, the shortage of regtech talent was identified as a significant barrier to adoption in Hong Kong’s banking sector.

To overcome this barrier, the HKMA’s two-year roadmap has proposed to establish a “Regtech Skills Framework” and to assess the current skills gaps in the market.

The objective is to develop a structured pathway to guide industry efforts in the development of regtech talent in Hong Kong.

To this end, the consultant commissioned by the HKMA has developed a skills matrix comprising 38 skills fundamental to its adoption.

These skills are separated into four domains, namely soft skills, compliance skills, business skills and technology/data skills.

Utilising the matrix, a skills assessment has been conducted among 158 authorised institutions and 34 regtech providers to identify the skills gaps in Hong Kong’s regtech ecosystem.

Based on the assessment results, the consultant has put forward a series of recommendations to address the identified skills gaps.

The recommendations include incorporating a regtech-related training curriculum within the Enhanced Competency Framework (ECF) on fintech being developed by the HKMA.

HKMA was also advised to establish an accreditation system to recognise eligible regtech learning programmes.

Additionally, the regulator needs to ensure ongoing leadership commitment to drive further regtech adoption and skill development.

The consultant also recommended leveraging existing communities of interest to encourage greater collaboration among participants in the regtech ecosystem.

“The HKMA will work with the industry and relevant professional bodies to take forward the above recommendations. Specifically, the HKMA is aiming to launch the ECF on Fintech by the end of 2021.

 

The HKMA will encourage training institutes such as the HKIB to offer more training courses and seminars related to Regtech to meet the needs of practitioners for continuing professional development.”

said Arthur Yuen, Deputy Chief Executive at HKMA.