Fintech to get bigger push as HKMA joins securities and insurance regulators on 12-month road map to wider adoption
- Plan will encourage banks, brokers and insurers to invest in technology to enhance services in wealth management, insurance and green finance
- Citi’s Hong Kong and Macau CEO welcomes the HKMA road map and believes customers will benefit from the push
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) will expand the scope of its fintech push in the next 12 months by teaming up with securities and insurance regulators to encourage financial-services companies to invest in technology to enhance their services in wealth management, insurance and green finance.
Alongside the Securities and Futures Commission and the Insurance Authority, HKMA on Friday announced a new road map of activities that will target banks, brokers and insurance companies.
The goal is to encourage all financial firms in Hong Kong to adopt new technologies, including artificial intelligence (AI) and distributed ledgers, to enhance their services, reduce costs, and enhance the city’s capabilities as an international financial centre.
“This new fintech promotion road map announced today marks a significant step not only for the banking sector but for the financial-services industry as a whole,” Arthur Yuen Kwok-hang, deputy CEO of HKMA, said in a media briefing. “It demonstrates the financial regulators’ dedication to innovate as we accelerate our drive to become a leading fintech hub.”
The road map forms part of the Fintech 2025 plan first launched by the HKMA in June 2021, with the intention to introduce a wide range of programmes to encourage the city’s more than 160 banks to invest in technology to enhance their services.