Eric Jing, Chairman of Ant Group, reaffirmed the company’s commitment to collaborating on regulated AI and blockchain innovation in Hong Kong, and to expanding cross-border payment and trade financing services to support the city’s efforts to help Chinese businesses operate internationally.
Speaking on a panel with Christopher Hui, Hong Kong’s Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, and Fred Hu, Founder, Chairman and CEO of Primavera Capital Group, at the 10th annual Hong Kong Fintech Week on 3 November, Jing highlighted Hong Kong’s combination of policy innovation, commercial use cases, and cross-sector collaboration as a foundation for its global leadership.
Ant Group first entered Hong Kong when Chinese consumers and travellers began making cross-border payments online and offline via Alipay.
Today, the city remains a key hub for Ant Group and its affiliates, including Ant Digital Technologies, Ant International, and OceanBase.
“AI and tokenisation are the two of the most critical forces driving the evolution of financial services,”
said Jing.
“Hong Kong regulators are leading the global experiment in both areas through visionary and prudent policy mechanisms.”
“Financial services are data-rich and language-heavy, relying on precise communication of abstract and complex products. Nevertheless, the pace of change is faster and faster. In the mid-term, we will be able to see the rise of full AI financial managers supported by a comprehensive AI agent ecosystem,”
he added.
Jing also noted the potential of blockchain-based tokenisation technology for secure, real-time global settlement, improving trade efficiency.
“The trend for tokenisation in fintech is not for speculation, but for regulated institutions to work within the policy framework to improve real efficiency and transparency in value exchange,”
he said.
Ant Digital Technologies is participating in the Hong Kong Monetary Authority’s (HKMA) GenAI Sandbox to support banks’ adoption of AI agents and enhance risk management and anti-fraud capabilities.
In early 2025, AntDT launched several initiatives from its Hong Kong headquarters, including a joint AI and Web3 lab with Hong Kong Polytechnic University and opening its four core technologies to local industry partners.
It also completed a pilot Real World Asset project under HKMA’s Project Ensemble for China’s new energy sector.
Ant International has used its Whale blockchain platform for global liquidity management pilots with Standard Chartered and HSBC, enabling real-time cross-border, cross-currency settlements, and supported HSBC’s first global tokenised deposits solution for corporate clients.
Through Alipay+, the global wallet gateway service, AI payment and growth agents are being rolled out to 4.5 million active users and businesses in Hong Kong via AlipayHK, as well as partner wallets across Southeast Asia.
In October, Hong Kong launched the GoGlobal Task Force to support Chinese enterprises in expanding internationally.
Featured image credit: Edited by Fintech News Hong Kong, based on image by memory_stockphoto via Freepik
