Source:
https://scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/2163467/9f-fintech-company-63-million-mainland-chinese-users-eyes
Business/ Banking & Finance

9F, fintech company with 63 million mainland Chinese users, eyes Hong Kong virtual banking licence

Company among applicants for first batch of licences to be issued by Hong Kong Monetary Authority

9F has hired veteran Hong Kong banker Patrick Ip Koon-tung to manage its virtual banking business, should it receive a licence. Photo: David Wong

Mainland Chinese financial technology company 9F Group has teamed up with local and international firms to apply for a virtual banking licence in Hong Kong.

The company, set up in Beijing in 2006 by founder and chief executive Sun Lei, who was among China’s first internet finance entrepreneurs, has more than 63 million users – of these, more than 8 million in the Greater Bay Area.