https://www.scmp.com/rss/520680/feed Matteo Giovannini is a finance professional with extensive experience in private and state-owned enterprises, specialising in Asian markets and cross-border project financing. He has been living in China for over a decade and in 2022 he was granted permanent resident status. He is a non-resident associate fellow at the Centre for China and Globalization (CCG) and a member of the Global Young Leaders Dialogue. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Matteo Giovannini Matteo Giovannini Hong Kong’s identity as a world-leading international hub has never been static. It has been built over time through openness, adaptability and, crucially, diversity. Recent discussions about the city’s talent strategy, including concerns that the overwhelming majority of applicants under key admission schemes come from mainland China, raise a deeper structural question: can Hong Kong remain truly global if its talent pipeline becomes increasingly concentrated? This is not about downplaying the... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3349169/hong-kongs-global-future-depends-diverse-talent?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3349169/hong-kongs-global-future-depends-diverse-talent?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 09 Apr 2026 01:30:08 +0000 Matteo Giovannini Matteo Giovannini China’s push to position Hong Kong as a global gold trading hub is not merely a commodities story. It is a strategic play unfolding at a time when the architecture of global finance is fragmenting and questions of monetary sovereignty are returning to the forefront. Recent reporting has highlighted Beijing’s efforts to strengthen Hong Kong’s role in international gold trading as part of a broader bid for market influence. Behind the move lies the ambition to reshape pricing power and the... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3345284/why-hong-kong-could-be-next-global-hub-gold-trading?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3345284/why-hong-kong-could-be-next-global-hub-gold-trading?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 08 Mar 2026 21:30:07 +0000 Matteo Giovannini Matteo Giovannini As China prepares its digital yuan for wider domestic and cross-border use, the global debate has turned again to a familiar question: is Beijing trying to challenge the US dollar’s dominance? But this misses the more consequential point. The significance of China’s digital currency push lies not in substitution, but in the transformation of the infrastructure that underpins international payments. Over the past few years, the e-CNY has evolved into one of the world’s most advanced central bank... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3341064/talk-digital-yuan-challenging-dollar-dominance-misses-real-power-shift?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3341064/talk-digital-yuan-challenging-dollar-dominance-misses-real-power-shift?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 25 Jan 2026 21:30:08 +0000 Matteo Giovannini Matteo Giovannini The opening of the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) Shanghai Centre on December 8 attracted limited attention outside specialist financial circles. The announcement was deliberately understated, framed as a technical step to strengthen policy dialogue and research in the Asia-Pacific. However, this move represents something more meaningful. It signals a quiet but consequential adjustment in global financial governance that aligns with Asia’s rising economic weight and China’s evolving role in... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3336479/global-finance-quietly-moving-east?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3336479/global-finance-quietly-moving-east?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 16 Dec 2025 08:30:10 +0000 Matteo Giovannini Matteo Giovannini Hong Kong’s financial identity is entering a new chapter, shaped as much by strategic alignment as capital flows. By co-launching a US$1 billion investment fund with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), the city is taking one of its most assertive steps yet to redefine Hong Kong’s financial identity in a rapidly changing global economy. The message is clear: Hong Kong intends to be a serious player in the next phase of global capital realignment. This comes as Hong Kong companies are... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3334122/betting-saudi-arabia-hong-kong-really-betting-itself?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3334122/betting-saudi-arabia-hong-kong-really-betting-itself?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 30 Nov 2025 08:30:11 +0000 The relentless drive to establish itself as a global leader in infrastructure development is leading China to reach new heights with the construction on an artificial island of the world’s largest offshore airport, the Dalian Jinzhouwan International Airport. Scheduled for completion by 2035, this ambitious project spans an area exceeding that of Hong Kong International Airport and Japan’s Kansai International Airport, highlighting China’s dedication to strengthening its connectivity and... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3292922/chinas-dalian-airport-will-be-more-infrastructure-marvel?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3292922/chinas-dalian-airport-will-be-more-infrastructure-marvel?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 04 Jan 2025 01:30:08 +0000