livi bank, one of Hong Kong’s eight virtual banks, has been granted an insurance agency license from the Hong Kong Insurance Authority. This paves the way for the bank to introduce a range of insurance products within the livi app. livi will initially partner with life insurance provider, BOC Group Life Assurance, one of its shareholder’s subsidiaries. BOC Life offers a comprehensive range of services in life insurance, wealth management and retirement protection. The bank said that it will be tailoring a range of products specifically to meet the needs of its customers by providing them with seamless access to…

HSBC Hong Kong has announced the appointment veteran banker Luanne Lim as its Chief Executive effective today onwards. Luanne was appointed Interim Chief Executive in September 2021. Prior to that, she was Chief Operating Officer at HSBC Hong Kong, a role that she has held since 2017. She has more than 25 years of experience in the banking industry. Since joining the bank in Singapore in 1999, she has held leadership roles and spearheaded strategic growth initiatives across a number of markets in Asia, including Hong Kong, mainland China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Vietnam. During her time as Chief Operating…

The evolution of digital transformation in APAC, accelerated by the pandemic and globalisation has been unprecedented in the last few years. To navigate this new world, and to shed more light on this topic, payments firm Payoneer partnered with the Digital Transformation & Leadership Podcast by Danny Levy, to talk about APACs’ digital evolution with insights from AirAsia and Payoneer. Featuring Mohamad Hafidz, Head of Payments & Financial Services at AirAsia and Nagesh Devata, APAC Regional VP & Head of Enterprise at Payoneer, this podcast episode got behind the scenes with these business leaders to understand how they are digitally transforming their companies, the…

Hong Kong’s virtual bank Mox announced that it has made two senior appointments for the Chief Information Officer (CIO) and the newly-created Chief Data, Security, and Innovation Officer (CDSIO) positions. Christian Piccardi joins Mox as the CIO while David Walker assumes the new CDSIO role. Both Christian and David will report directly to Barbaros Uygun who is the CEO of Mox. Christian is a proven technology and IT veteran with over 25 years of experience. He joins from ING Austria, where he, as the CIO, led the technology operations to become more agile while optimising productivity, resilience and operational efficiency.…

The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) announced that the Banking Talent Programme that it has jointly organised with the banking industry will be further extended for 6 months until the end of August this year. Since the introduction of the programme in 2020, a total of more than 600 fresh graduates have been provided with job opportunities and professional training. The employment period of graduates recruited in 2021 under the programme will expire at the end of February this year. After balancing different considerations and taking into account the feedback from the banking sector, the HKMA said that it has…

Global payments network EMQ further strengthens its multi-currency B2B payment offerings for enterprises with options including same-day settlement in RMB and USD across its payout network reaching over 150 banks in China. With EMQ Connect API, customers can pay directly in RMB and USD with same-day payment options, thereby improving the speed and cost of international payments across the global marketplace. The latest development comes on the heels of a recent series of expansion initiatives to bolster EMQ’s network infrastructure and product portfolio with real-time payments capabilities across Europe, Hong Kong, China, Thailand, Singapore, South Korea, India, Indonesia, Cambodia, Vietnam,…

HashKey Group, a Hong Kong-based digital asset financial services group, announced that its asset management subsidiary has completed an initial closing of its new fund in December 2021 with commitments of US$360 million. The fund seeks to invest in companies and projects building products and services utilising blockchain technology that may include but are not limited to venture equity in Asia as well as early-stage tokens and major liquid tokens. It also aims to provide investors institutional-grade exposure to a full spectrum of blockchain technology and crypto assets. Since 2015, HashKey Group has invested in companies and projects across the…

Global Fintech-as-a-Service platform Rapyd announced that it has completed the acquisition of  Neat, a Hong Kong-based cross-border trade enabling platform for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) and startups. Neat’s services, capabilities, and licenses will be integrated into Rapyd’s platform providing an easy-to-use online global trade solution optimised for SMBs, entrepreneurs, and growing companies. With the integration of Neat into the Rapyd Global Payments Network, users will now be able to incorporate new companies in minutes, streamline receivables and payables in a single venue, starting with Hong Kong and soon in other trade-friendly markets around the world. Users will also be…

Babel Finance, a Hong Kong-based crypto financial-services startup, has raised US$40 million from a slew of global investors. The investors include Tiger Global Management, Sequoia Capital China, Sequoia-affiliated Dragonfly Capital, Bertelsmann through its Asia-focused investment arm BAI Capital, and Zoo Capital. With this investment, Babel Finance said that it will innovate its offerings which includes crypto lending, crypto prime financing, and crypto asset management. Additionally, Babel Finance had used this financing round to build strategic external partnerships which includes an investment in Paradigm, an institutional liquidity network for derivatives traders. The company has also acquired the services of blockchain data…

Though crypto-assets do not pose a risk to financial stability just yet, they very well might in the near future as this new asset class continues to develop at a rapid pace. The fast-growing cryptocurrency ecosystem, the rising prevalence of crypto-assets, and tech firms’ involvement in stablecoin projects, are calling for regulators to bring crypto-assets within the regulatory perimeter. In Hong Kong, the central bank is working on a new regulation to tackle these risks. The regime will be introduced no later than 2023/24, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) says. “A risk-based approach” On January 12, 2022, the HKMA…

The Sandbox, a decentralised gaming metaverse and a subsidiary of Animoca Brands, has committed US$50 million to global venture accelerator Brinc for The Sandbox Metaverse Accelerator Programme, which will target 100 startups to enhance the open metaverse. With applications now open and the first cohort scheduled to start in Q2 2022, The Sandbox Metaverse Accelerator Programme is a dedicated track within Launchpad Luna, the accelerator launched in mid-2021 as a partnership between Brinc and Animoca Brands. The new programme aims to accelerate 30 to 40 startups a year over a three-year period. Blockchain startups in the fields of art, collectibles,…

Global payments network EMQ has deepened its reach across Europe by adding the SEPA instant credit transfer (SCT Inst) capabilities to its network. This further extends EMQ’s network infrastructure into the high-growth markets in the SEPA (Single Euro Payments Area) zone, and enables global enterprises to send funds instantly in euros to a wider set of beneficiary accounts in Europe. Already live in Europe, the expanded capabilities enable global enterprises and their customers to send and receive a maximum of 100,000 euros within minutes, to eligible accounts, under the SEPA Instant Credit Transfer scheme of the European Payments Council (EPC).…

Hong Kong’s virtual bank ZA Bank has received a license from the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) for Type 1 regulated activity which allows it to deal with securities. The bank claims to be the first local digital-only bank to receive said license and will officially launch its investment fund service in due course. With this license, ZA Bank will be able to offer users simple and convenient investment services, with an initial focus on creating a different fund investment experience with an array of products in the pipeline. ZA Bank added that users can then embark on a one-stop,…

Animoca Brands, the company driving digital property rights via NFTs and gaming to build the open metaverse, announced that it has raised about US$358.8 million at a pre-money valuation of US$5 billion. The round was led by Liberty City Ventures, with other investors including 10T Holdings, C Ventures, Delta Fund, Gemini Frontier Fund, Gobi Partners Greater Bay Area, Kingsway, L2 Capital, Mirae Asset, Pacific Century Group, ParaFi Capital, Provident, Senator Investment Group, Sequoia China, Smile Group, Stable Asset Management, Soros Fund Management, Wildcat Capital Management, Winklevoss Capital, and others. The company said that the new capital will be used to…

The 15th Asian Financial Forum (AFF) organised by the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) and the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) opened to explore a sustainable future for the world’s economy. AFF 2022 was a highlight event celebrating the 25th anniversary of the HKSAR. The two-day online forum featured 60 sessions including keynote speeches and in-depth discussions along with an array of activities such as exhibitions and the AFF Deal Flow Matchmaking Session. Under the theme “Navigating the Next Normal towards a Sustainable Future”, more than 170 global business leaders, policymakers, financial and wealth management…

Refinitiv has created a global community for developers in the financial industry. In continuing its longstanding history as a leader of innovation and open tech, the Refinitiv Developer Community offers practical support for today’s business challenges. This community offers enterprise developers access to capabilities, tools, interactive information, learning materials, events and global community. Refinitiv encourages broad, as well as in-depth, engagement with data. To enable efficient work with data we offer guides and insights to navigate Refinitiv API. Some of the Developer Community’s most popular resources are engaging events, blogs and webinars, of which the latter are available on demand. An in-favour…

The metaverse frenzy is sweeping across Asia, attracting interest from tech giants, electronics manufacturers and investors. At CES 2022, an annual consumer electronics trade show that took place earlier this month, Asian firms ranging from LG and Panasonic to automotive manufacturer Hyundai, showcased their latest developments on metaverse technologies, demonstrating their ambition to play a key role in this futurist reality. South Korean electronics company LG presented several metaverse startups it is working with under an incubation program, including iQ3, a company that builds applications and services for enterprises in the metaverse, and I3M, which specializes in immersive digital experiences.…

Wallyt, a Hong Kong-based digital payment and open banking solutions provider, has partnered with the Philippines’ Asia United Bank (AUB) to launch a card payment acceptance solution for merchants via a card QR code or link. Through the strategic partnership, AUB PayMate’s merchants can accept Mastercard payments without incurring additional cost for the payment terminal just by enabling them with a secure card QR code or link. With the new payment option for AUB PayMate merchants, customers only need to use a smartphone camera to scan the card QR code displayed at the AUB PayMate merchants’ stores. The customer will…

Hong Kong continues to pursue its fintech ambitions, accelerating efforts related to regtech and central bank digital currency (CBDC). Meanwhile, the city’s eight virtual banks are seeing strong consumer uptake as they continue expanding their product offerings. Fintech News Hong Kong’s newly released Hong Kong Fintech Report 2022 looks at key developments in the space that occurred in 2021 and share emerging trends to watch out for. In particular, the report delves into three key themes that emerged this year – CBDC, regtech and virtual banking –, gives an overview of the fintech startup landscape and outlines some of the…

Over 300 fintech companies from 49 global economies have received support from Global Fast Track 2021, a business-driven programme at Hong Kong Fintech Week 2021. 89 top fintech firms were subsequently selected to further benefit from the programme. Designed to help fintech companies from all over the world scale in Hong Kong and Asia, the programme consists of business matchings of fintech firms with corporates and investors, a pitching competition, regulators’ and mentors’ sessions, and a variety of soft landing programmes offered by the programme’s partners. Global Fast Track is led by Invest Hong Kong (InvestHK), and delivered by FINNOVASIA.…