“Think Asia, Think Hong Kong,” a large-scale Hong Kong business promotion organised in London by the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) and supported by more than 60 UK organisations, attracted over 2,100 participants from the United Kingdom, Hong Kong and the Chinese mainland. Over a three-day period (19-21 September), a series of activities were held, including business missions, a gala dinner, and a full-day symposium featuring 50 high-profile speakers in panel discussions and thematic seminars, plus more than 220 business matching meetings. Returning to the UK since its launch in 2011, this flagship promotion profiled Hong Kong’s strengths as…

With cybercrime on the increase, payment card security is increasingly a focus for companies and consumers alike. The Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) is there to help businesses that take card payments protect their payment systems from breaches and theft of cardholder data. The findings from the Verizon 2017 Payment Security Report (2017 PSR) demonstrate a link between organizations being compliant with the standard, and their ability to defend themselves against cyberattacks. Of all payment card data breaches Verizon investigated, no organization was fully compliant at the time of breach, and showed lower compliance with 10 out…

Chinese securities companies are expanding beyond the traditional brokerage business into wealth management and an overseas footprint, with digitalisation one of the key competitive differentiators, finds KPMG’s latest survey. KPMG China’s 11th annual survey of 129 securities companies in mainland China highlights that revenue from investment banking increased 30 percent year on year to RMB 68.1 billion – the result of an accelerated IPO and bond approval process. Investment banking accounted for one-fifth of the industry’s total income in 2016, compared to nine percent in 2015. Meanwhile, the asset management sector gained prominence in 2016 as it generated nine percent…

Ping An Insurance China announced the launch of 10 innovative services backed by the world’s leading AI technology. The services are jointly launched by the Group’s subsidiaries, including life and P&C insurance, annuity, bank, credit card, securities, Caifubao, Lufax, Puhui, Ping An Good Doctor and Ping An Technology. Most of these innovative services are the first of their kind in the respective industries. On the back of Ping An’s cutting edge technology in face recognition, cloud computing and big data, these services aim at providing users with smart and top class experiences. They feature three main daily life scenarios — health, travel and wealth management –…

Smart Transfer announced the official launch of the world’s first person-to-person mobile payment platform that enables international social payments across multiple currencies at no charge to users. Aside from bank accounts, Smart Transfer allows international money transactions to be made to any phone number, email address, or social media platform. Person-to-person payment services offered by existing platforms are typically restricted to a single country, currency, or proprietary platform, and may involve service fees ranging up to 8% of the transaction amount. As payments become increasingly digital and mobile based, Smart Transfer is envisioned to play a vital role in enabling…

Ping An Securities has implemented FusionCapital from  Finastra throughout its operations in Greater China. The business, part of China’s Ping An Group, is now using the flexible Finastra platform to help extend its securities brokerage capabilities on a global scale–meaning it can boost revenues as it enters new markets. “Legacy systems in China are built around existing domestic regulations and rules but they don’t have the capabilities to help us compete globally,” said Andy Han, Director of Development at Ping An Securities. “Our main goal in seeking an electronic trading platform partner was to find a provider that delivers the…

Hong Kong Cyberport  and the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) bring the largest FinTech delegation to London from 19 to 21 September to expand partnership network for FinTech industry players between the two cities. This is part of the annual ICT delegation co-organised by Cyberport and the Hong Kong Information Technology Joint Council. The delegation comprises over 70 participants, including representatives from the Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau and The Information and Technology Bureau of the Hong Kong SAR Government, the HKMA, banks, investors, professional bodies, and FinTech start-ups from Cyberport. The mission aims at forging connections amongst stakeholders…

The State Secretariat for International Financial Matters (SIF) under the Swiss Federal Department of Finance and the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) launched on 19 September 2017 in Berne a financial dialogue to promote cooperation on financial market issues of common interest. At the margin of the Dialogue, the Swiss Bankers Association (SBA) and the HKMA facilitated an open seminar for the private sector. The financial dialogue between the HKMA and Swiss authorities aims to enhance official exchanges between Hong Kong and Switzerland on policy issues of mutual interest, especially those relating to financial services developments at bilateral and multilateral…

TNG FinTech Group announces an extension of its strategic global money transfer partnership with Tranglo Europe Limited a cross-border payment gateway. The existing money transfer partnership, which covers Asia, will now extend to the United Kingdom TNG also announces plans to invest US$20 million to launch a local electronic wallet  in the UK, making it the first Asian FinTech company to access the European market with The Next Generation financial services offering. TNG is the operator of TNG Wallet, Hong Kong’s leading e-wallet which revolutionises the way consumers shop, pay and transfer money through its comprehensive suite of FinTech services,…

Fintech has become a hot topic in South Korea, fueled by the government’s ambition to position the country as a center for tech companies and a commitment of US$230 million to help foster startups, and driven by the financial services sector that’s seeking innovative ways to provide services and solutions to challenge the traditional banking sector. Investment in financial technology companies jumped to 100 billion won (US$693.4 million) as of June 2016 from 2015’s 473 billion and 2014’s 87 billion, according to government data. To date, there are over 400 fintech companies in South Korea, but the following 10 companies are amongst…

Deloitte announced that the Asia Pacific Blockchain Lab (the “Lab”) has officially opened in Hong Kong. In addition to formulating strategies, the Lab will implement and deploy Distributed Ledger Technology (“DLT”) for corporate clients across the region. DLT is used in a number of ways, including digital identity, digital banking, cross-border payments, trade finance and loyalty and rewards solutions. Hong Kong was chosen as the location for the regional Lab as it is a mature financial centre and trading hub, with demand for eco-system enablement through DLT. Hong Kong also has a supportive regulatory environment and a talented international workforce. “Our…

As Maurice Conti, who is a designer, futurist, and innovator, recently said in one of his Ted Talks: ‘We’re already in an era where our natural human capabilities will be ‘augmented’ by computational systems that help us think; robotics systems that help us make; and digital nervous systems that connect us to the world far beyond our natural senses! Today, we’re at the cusp of our new era as a species … the ‘augmented age.’’ In the beginning of his talk he enlightens us on how far the human race has come in the billions of years our species has existed…

TNG FinTech Group,  the operator of TNG Wallet, announced today the completion of its Series A round of funding, raising US$115 million at a post-transaction valuation of US$565 million. The transaction sets the record for the biggest-ever funding in a Series A round by any startup in Hong Kong, and one of the largest Series A rounds for a FinTech company in the world, making TNG one of the largest FinTech groups globally. The investment is to support TNG’s global expansion strategy, to fund new acquisitions and to invest in new technologies such as Blockchain Technology, Artificial Intelligence (AI), ChatBot…

Following top U.S. banks and financial services firms, Velotrade has deployed eSignLive™, VASCO’s e-signature solution to securely sign and process documents for digital client onboarding and account opening. eSignLive is the electronic signature solution behind some of the world’s most trusted brands. Regulated industries and top analyst firms recognize eSignLive for its ability to balance the highest levels of security, compliance and auditability with ease-of-use to automate any process. “eSignLive e-signatures made automation and digitization of our services possible. Velotrade is a FinTech with bank grade security,” says Gianluca Pizzituti, CEO of Velotrade. “We have been looking for a system that…

Visa is committed to enhancing contactless payment experience and security, and to the advancement of mobile payment ecosystem in Hong Kong. Backed by a tech-savvy society with a high percentage of electronic payment in term of the total personal consumption expenditures in Hong Kong (65.5 percent), Visa’s contactless in face-to-face transactions ratio has tripled in the past 18 months, meaning that one in three face-to-face Visa transactions is now made through either mobile or Visa payWave. Visa payWave is a contactless payment service that was first introduced in 2008.  Today, with an issuance of over 4 million Visa payWave cards and over a…

Invest Hong Kong announced that Hong Kong’s regulators, along with a host of private sector partners, entrepreneurs and industry leaders, will participate in the second annual Hong Kong FinTech Week, to be held from October 23 to 27 at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre in Wan Chai. The Week will focus on the driving forces that shape Hong Kong as a global financial technology (FinTech) hub. Key stakeholders of the Week include the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA), the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC), the Insurance Authority and Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited, plus a string of…

China is the global fintech leader with the largest fintech market in the world as measured by total investment, total addressable market, and digital usage, and Shanghai is one of its three fintech powerhouses. Shanghai, a global financial center, has seen its fintech industry surge in recent years, fueled by government support to construct a science and tech innovation center, and fintech leaders such as Alipay, Zhong An, and Lufax that are stimulating financial innovation. To keep up with the fast-evolving fintech and blockchain scenes, we have listed for you some of the most anticipated events that are taking place…

So, this happened: China bans initial coin offerings calling them ‘illegal fundraising’ – BBC “The People’s Bank of China has declared initial coin offerings (ICOs) illegal and wants them to “cease immediately”.” Updated: Central bank says all ICOs illegal, Technode China ordered ICO Funds to be returned to investors: Impact on the Global ICO Market – cryptocoinsnews.com “Several blockchain projects including Health Mutual Society have already refunded all of the funds they have raised in bitcoin and Ethereum over the past few months. ” Which saw a sharp drop in cryptocurrency prices: Cryptocurrencies have crashed 20% in two days -…

The Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) today issued a statement on existing regulations which could be applicable to initial coin offerings (ICOs). Today’s statement explains that depending on the facts and circumstances of an ICO, digital tokens that are offered or sold may be “securities” as defined in the Securities and Futures Ordinance, and accordingly subject to the securities laws of Hong Kong. ICOs typically involve the issuance of digital tokens, created and disseminated using distributed ledger or blockchain technology. Whilst digital tokens offered in typical ICOs are usually characterised as a “virtual commodity”, the SFC has observed that certain ICOs have…

Hong Kong-based Paycelerate is providing a working capital marketplace that directly matches supply and demand, helping businesses in the Asia-Pacific region optimize short-term funding and payment terms. Paycelerate operates discrete marketplaces between corporates (who have excess cash), and suppliers (who have cash needs to be met), to agree deals to accelerate payment of invoices. Small and medium businesses (SMEs) offer discounts to receive early payment of invoices from their corporate buyers, and benefit from inexpensive, straightforward funding. Meanwhile, buyers generate significantly higher returns on their cash than existing bank deposits by paying these discounted invoices early. The marketplaces run using a…