Organised by the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) and the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC), the 12th Asian Financial Forum (AFF) will be held on 14-15 Jan 2019 at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre (HKCEC). Under the theme “Creating a Sustainable and Inclusive Future”, policymakers will be joined by financial and business leaders to examine topical issues in the global economy and explore new opportunities. Besides launching the new FinTech Showcase, this year’s AFF will feature discussions on a wide range of issues such as sustainable and inclusive development, global investment in the…

CryptoBLK in collaboration with The Hong Kong Federation of Insurance (HKFI), launched a Motor Insurance DLT-based Authentication System (MIDAS), the first motor insurance platform in Asia using blockchain technology in production to verify the authenticity of motor cover notes/policies. Verification of motor insurance documents has been a challenge due to fake documents from illegal motor insurance brokers. There was also the added difficulty in tracking multiple fraudulent claims over a single incident. With MIDAS, the underlying blockchain technology, or DLT (distributed ledger technology), now offers real-time authentication of motor insurance notes and policies, as well as multi-stakeholder verification and audit trails.…

Hang Seng Bank and Tencent announced that they have established a strategic fintech partnership. The parties will initially collaborate on various aspects of technology application, account-opening procedures and retail payment services with the aims of providing customers with innovative and convenient digital service solutions and driving the development of fintech initiatives. Hang Seng and Tencent will combine their business strengths – including Hang Seng’s extensive service network in Hong Kong and Tencent’s advanced technologies – to create good business synergy in their collaborative efforts in the following areas: Technology application: Tencent will use its expertise and experience to help Hang…

Velotrade, the first Account Receivables Financing Platform in Hong Kong to obtain a Type 1 Regulated Activity licence by the Securities and Futures Commission, is now ready to provide institutions with access to new investment opportunities in this steadily developing alternative asset class. Since commencing operations in 2017, Velotrade has handled cross-border financing deals in Hong Kong, China, Singapore, Taiwan and Vietnam with automotive; electronics manufacturing; brand name supermarket chains; and leading garment industry players. Now the company is set to deliver Receivables Financing solutions for increasingly large scale local and international transactions, backed by the reassurance provided by Hong…

We love Shenzhen. Sure, Beijing has Zhongguancun and Shanghai has its international and diverse entrepreneurial community. But Shenzhen has a certain je ne sais quoi, an energy that pervades the entire city. Maybe it’s the great weather or maybe its youth of the city (both the residents and the age of the city itself), but every time we come to this southern city, we’re amazed by the people, projects, and companies thriving here. And this year was no different, from blockchain smartphones to battling robots, from hackathons to VC speed dating, TechCrunch Shenzhen saw over 8000 attendees and 150 startups showing off their stuff. It was a whirlwind…

WeSure, Tencent’s insurance platform, has widened its line of products and formed partnerships with 20 insurance and reinsurance companies. The “data-driven” and “social connection” features of WeChat, as Alan Lau, Chairman & CEO of WeSure, mentioned in a recent CNBC interview, will help WeSure recommend more suitable products to users, while partnerships with more insurance companies will continue to diversify the platform’s offerings. Lau said, “So far we have formed partnerships with more than 20 insurance companies, including Taikang, Pacific Insurance, PICC, Ping An, MetLife, and more. We will continue to widen our offerings and take a user angle to pre-select and customize products. We…

Hong Kong Fintech Week, arranged by Invest Hong Kong (InvestHK), wrapped up on Friday with Shenzhen Day, a first-ever cross-border fintech event, attended by several hundred delegates for discussions and speeches before departing to visit the offices of Tencent, WeBank and ZhongAn. Hong Kong SAR Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, Mr. James Lau, gave welcoming remarks and mentioned that, with the recent opening of the high-speed rail link between Hong Kong and Guangzhou, as well as the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge, there will be increased business activity and interaction between people in the three regions. (For the full text…

The fourth day of Hong Kong Fintech Week, organised by Invest Hong Kong  at Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, continued at full tilt right to the very end, thanks partly to a regulatory announcement on cryptocurrencies and partly to the quality of the speakers and panel sessions. Day 5 sees the event go cross-border as it takes the high-speed train to Shenzhen for the first time. The day started with keynote speech by Ashley Alder, CEO, Securities and Futures Commission (SFC), on the main stage started proceedings Thursday with a speech that gave context for an important SFC announcement on cryptocurrencies…

Day 3 at Hong Kong Fintech Week at Hong Kong Exhibition and Convention Centre was buzzed with energy as the three stages hosted speeches and lively panel sessions to full houses, while the numerous fintech company booths attracted delegates amid the hubbub of meetings, photos, interviews and networking. The day opened with a keynote speech given by Paul Chan, Financial Secretary, HKSAR Government, who highlighted Hong Kong’s strengths recent developments in fintech and discussed the city in the context of the Greater Bay Area. “Some people already call Shenzhen the Silicon Valley of China.  Imagine placing Silicon Valley next to New York…

In an effort to inform, inspire and connect Big Data & Analytics practitioners across industries, Forward Leading is hosting the Big Data & Machine Learning Leaders Summit on December 6 & 7 at the InterContinental Grand Stanford Hong Kong. This Summit has been successfully hosted in Sydney, Boston and Singapore throughout the past year and will be returning to Asia for the 3rd time. The 2018 Hong Kong edition will gather 120 innovative data leaders from the likes of Alibaba, AXA, LinkedIn, Standard Chartered Bank, American Express, Alliance Bernstein, L’Oréal, Genting. Organisations from tech giant Alibaba to financial services company…

Day two of the FinovateAsia leg of Hong Kong Fintech Week, organised by Invest Hong Kong (InvestHK), focused on the need for financial institutions to adapt to change or risk disappearing, along with fintech petting zoos, when to run and exciting developments in mainland China, before ending on a high with a launch event for the InvestHK part of Fintech Week at the Hong Kong Exchange. In fact, the HKEx event, an entrée to the regulator day on Wednesday, proved to be the highlight of the day. In a welcome speech, Charles Li, CEO of the HKEx, talked about the important role…

Reflecting the rapid evolution of the digital asset industry and the growing regulatory scrutiny of the sector, the FinTech Association of Hong Kong (FTAHK) has issued an updated and revised version of its guidance on best practice in token sales. Originally launched in December 2017, the refreshed and updated 35-page paper expands the scope of the original to include other token events, including airdrops and security tokens (or “STOs”), as well as to connect directly with the ground-breaking Code of Conduct produced by the Global Digital Finance industry body. It also updates the sections covering governance standards and know-your-customer (KYC)…

Hong Kong Fintech Week, organised by Invest Hong Kong (InvestHK), kicked off Monday with FinovateAsia 2018, a two-day conference comprising industry expert and regulator speeches, along with its signature seven-minute live demos. The audience heard about the transformation of the banking sector, dinosaurs and what to watch out for in 2019. Greg Palmer, Vice President of Strategy at Finovate, launched the event with a welcome speech, which is followed by a keynote by Chris Skinner, Chairman of the Financial Services Club, on the impact of data and challenger banks on the financial services industry. “We’re finally seeing the transformation of the banking sector,”…

International Financial Corporation, a member of the World Bank Group, and Ant Financial,  the operator of Alipay, jointly announced the 10×1000 Tech for Inclusion programme at the 2018 Annual Meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank Group. The initiative will include a comprehensive programme that embraces interactivity and the exchange of ideas to provide training to 10,000 tech experts in emerging markets from both public and private sectors over the next 10 years. Alibaba Group founder and Executive Chairman Jack Ma said that the programme aims to build an interactive and open platform to increase support for…

X Financial and NBA China announced today a multi-year marketing partnership that makes the company an official marketing partner of NBA China. X Financial is a leading technology-driven personal finance company in China, and it is NBA China’s first time cooperating with a company in China’s personal finance industry. The announcement was made at a press conference in Shenzhen by TangYue, Founder and Chairman of X Financial. Dikembe Mutombo, NBA Legend and Zhang Zhehan, a Chinese actor, were also present at the press conference. Starting from the 2018-19 season, NBA China will integrate X Financial and its brands including, Xiaoying Wealth Management and Xiaoying Card Loan, into NBA China’s marketing and media platforms to share the excitement of X…

Wecash, a Beijing-based fintech start-up has teamed up with Japanese financial firm ORIX and Hong Kong property developer SEA Group to apply for a virtual bank licence from the Hong Kong Monetary Authority. George Zhi Zhengchun, 32, founder and chief executive of Wecash, said his company will be the largest stakeholder in the joint venture, without disclosing specific details of the underlying structure. The three stakeholders will invest a combined HK$1 billion (US$127.88 million) into the virtual bank to offer consumer financing in Hong Kong. The application was submitted before the deadline on August 31. “The three major shareholders have their strengths and networks and they would…

Contentos, a decentralized global content ecosystem, announces a multi-million dollar investment from Binance Labs. Launched by Binance, one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, Binance Labs is an incubator and social impact fund that invests in top projects that are using blockchain technology to transform diverse industries. “The idea for Contentos began when I noticed a serious need for a decentralized content ecosystem offering transparent and fair monetization of creators’ content and no third-party censorship or removal of content,” said Mick Tsai, CEO, and co-founder of Contentos. “The Contentos team is thrilled to have the support of Binance…

The city-state Hong Kong has long been a staple in the Asia Pacific market. Home to a number of financial giants, a thriving commercial real estate economy, and other corporations, the region, which is already densely packed, is looking to expand outward into other areas.  With investments pouring in from China, Hong Kong is still the hottest ticket in town. For those looking for office space, however, Hong Kong’s high rents – some of the highest internationally – are very unattractive to business interests, especially if you are on a tight budget. Worse yet, if you are currently looking for…

After the first full year of operation, blockchain protocol QTUM has plenty to celebrate, both for its future and its already illustrious past. In its short time on the market QTUM has achieved several transformative successes and is aiming for much grander things with new initiatives and a new roadmap for 2019 and beyond. Among the most significant milestones during QTUM’s year one was the launch of its main net and essential advances in the research and community development front. This includes funding several key areas of study at academic institutions such as The University of California-Berkley in the United States,…

Colliers released its latest research report Top Locations in Asia’s Technology sector. The report, based on a comprehensive study of 16 cities in developed and emerging markets across Asia, examines nearly 50 criteria across a spectrum of socio-economic, property and human factors to determine the viability of these cities as tech hubs as a workability index for the tech sector. Andrew Haskins, Colliers’ Asia Head of Research, commented: “Launched this year to support the rapidly growing tech sector in Asia, this new study builds on Colliers’ earlier “Tech Trends in Asia” research by recommending the best urban locations for technology firms. Bangalore,…