Hong Kong sharpens fintech focus as a collaborative centre
Analysts are confident the city has an important role as a hub for the region
If you ask Charles d’Haussy, head of fintech at InvestHK, the combination of mainland firms listing in the city and large financial institutions striking deals with start-ups is a sign of things to come: the city will remain a financial hub, but this time with technology at its core.
“Hong Kong’s history has always been as gateway for trade,” said d’Haussy on the sidelines of the Hong Kong Fintech Week. “It will be the same going forward: it is going to be the place where mainland fintech companies come to sell their platforms to the world.”
He said the city should continue to use the role as a gateway between the mainland and the rest of the world to differentiate itself from flourishing regional competitors including Singapore and Shenzhen.
“The capital markets are here, as are the world’s big banks.”
Finding the city’s fintech groove has been a slow road for a territory that sits near the top of global competitiveness rankings, but lags behind when it comes to innovation in financial technology.
But the growth of mainland fintech players looking to use the city to expand beyond China is starting to change how Hong Kong is viewed.
Take ZhongAn Online Property & Casualty Insurance, China’s first online-only insurer, which recently listed in the city and has since become Hong Kong’s biggest listed fintech company. Analysts say the move will pave the way for further mainland players to list here thanks to the positive reception from investors, which saw ZhongAn raise US$1.5 billion.