Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) debuted Fintech Connect, its first cross-sectoral sourcing platform, during Hong Kong Fintech Week 2024.

The platform aims to connect financial institutions with fintech solution providers to foster collaboration and innovation.

This includes Qianhai-based fintech providers to strengthen partnerships in the Greater Bay Area.

HKMA also rolled out Project Ensemble to enhance asset tokenisation in Hong Kong through its Ensemble Sandbox, supporting use cases across digital bonds, money market funds, CBDCs, and real-world assets.

The project completed six tokenisation use cases across four main themes, with a report on these expected in 2025.

International collaborations with the Central Bank of Brazil and the Bank of Thailand are exploring cross-border tokenisation, while HKMA’s founding membership in the Linux Foundation Decentralised Trust aims to improve DLT interoperability.

The Architecture Community for Project Ensemble has also expanded, adding three members and four new participants who are experimenting with the Ensemble Sandbox on fixed income and investment fund use cases.

Further promoting digital bond innovation, HKMA introduced the Digital Bond Grant Scheme under Project Evergreen, which offers up to HK$2.5 million per eligible issuance.

Following industry consultations, HKMA plans to release detailed guidelines shortly.

EvergreenHub was also launched as a knowledge resource on digital bond transactions to support issuers and investors.

Additionally, HKMA is advancing cross-border payments by working with the People’s Bank of China to connect Hong Kong’s Faster Payment System (FPS) with Mainland China’s Internet Banking Payment System (IBPS), aiming for instant, 24/7 small-value transfers by mid-2025.

In data infrastructure, the HKMA is enhancing its Commercial Data Interchange (CDI) to support SME lending, with connections to the Land Registry and integration with the Airport Authority’s cargo platform.

HKMA is also piloting cross-boundary credit referencing with Mainland credit reference platforms to expand cross-border banking services.

Additionally, a proof-of-concept upgrade for the Commercial Credit Reference Agency (CCRA) is underway to further streamline lending assessments.

On a global scale, HKMA is involved in Project Aperta to build an open finance API network focused on reducing costs in SME trade finance.

In a separate initiative, the HKMA continues its FiNETech series, including sessions on GreenTech and DLT, following the launch of the Generative Artificial Intelligence Sandbox in August.

An AI-powered programme is also being introduced to enhance banks’ monitoring of complex money laundering cases.

Eddie Yue, Chief Executive of the HKMA, said,

“As we approach the ninth edition of Hong Kong Fintech Week, the ecosystem has experienced remarkable growth and development in various aspects, with ongoing innovation consistently reshaping the fintech landscape.

To further propel the growth of the industry, our financial sector must remain adaptable and open to new opportunities. We are committed to unlocking the full potential and advantage of fintech, and harnessing its power to drive sustainable growth of the ecosystem.”