HKMA receives positive feedback about new office to facilitate ‘One Belt, One Road’ fundraising
Hong Kong seeks hub role in financing of infrastructure projects
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority says it has received positive feedback from many stakeholders about a soon-to-be-launched office to facilitate multibillion-dollar fundraising for the many infrastructure projects for the 60-country “One Belt, One Road” scheme.
The office would begin operation this summer and was expected to strengthen the city’s role as a fundraising centre, HKMA chief executive Norman Chan Tak-lam said on Thursday.
The South China Morning Post reported on Wednesday that Financial Secretary John Tsang Chun-wah had asked the HKMA to set up an infrastructure financing facilitation office (IFFO) to help arrange the many fundraising projects expected after Hong Kong becomes a member of the Beijing-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank later this year.
Chan told hundreds of people attending a yuan forum on Thursday morning the HKMA had started to contact countries, bankers, sovereign funds and fund managers about office, which would soon launch a website.
Many of these countries are emerging markets which do not have the capital or technology to develop their economies
“Please note that the IFFO is not a deal-matching platform,” Chan said. “We do not introduce deals but we provide a platform for the stakeholders to exchange information, research, data and to facilitate more efficient and sustainable fund flows.