Banking Today

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Issue #99 (Mar - Apr 2018)
	Cover Story Hong Kong as the New Logistics Hub of the Pearl River Delta While China continues to step up its development strategies, many wonders how Hong Kong’s banking and financing industry can benefit from it. Belt and Road Initiative and the Greater Bay Area Initiative are tremendously boosting the construction and transporting industry. With increased movement of people, goods, and services across regions, these capital-intensive sectors create new demands for banks. Pre-empting anti-money laundering risks and allowing greater mobility of fund are some examples to allow the city to gain the most out of it. It is also important for banks to address regulatory, logistical, and operational barriers to provide credit and investment services between the three jurisdictions in an integrated manner.
	China World Green Certification as an Enabler for Green Bonds in Greater China Following the first retail green bond sold in China by China Development Bank and a major green bond launched by ICBC raising 2.15 billion US Dollars last year, Swire Properties also launched the Green Bond Principles in Hong Kong, which was made possible by the Green Finance Certification Scheme (GFCS) launched by the Hong Kong Quality Assurance Agency (HKQAA). The GFCS not only validates a company’s claim to benefit the environment, it goes a step further to verify the implementation effectiveness of such claims. While meeting both mainland Chinese and international standards, it is hoped that the scheme will lead the regulatory changes in mainland China’s green finance market.
	FinTech Driving Collaboration and Innovation: The Best of Hong Kong's FinTech The winners of the Hong Kong ICT Awards 2018 - FinTech Awards were announced earlier in March, celebrating some of the city’s top FinTech projects in three different categories of “banking, insurance and capital market”, “emerging solutions & FinTech security”, and “RegTech & risk management”. HSBC’s PayMe has garnered the Grand Award by impressing the judges with its incorporation of social media elements and a clear roadmap of development. With Hong Kong being an ideal breeding ground for innovative concepts and many materializing into actual products, the Hong Kong Institute of Bankers will continue to nurture relevant talents and develop the city into an international FinTech hub.
	Knowledge Plus Agile Talents Needed for the Upcoming Banking Revolution Along with China’s development policies in the Greater Bay Area and the Internet+ concept, talent flow is bolstered while FinTech initiatives prevail in all industries. While banks face a larger supply of banking talents and a higher pressure to make ways for FinTech, many speculate the possibilities of company restructuring upon digital transformation. Human resources heads from various major banks in Hong Kong share their views on qualities of a high-calibre banker and the importance of agility. Stepping into the generation of the millennials, banks are also deploying various work-life friendly policies and technology to attract young talents.
	GRC Corner Regulatory Climate on Cryptocurrency in Hong Kong and Singapore With the crackdown of cryptocurrency in more countries, many businesses are looking to friendlier Asian jurisdictions, such as Hong Kong and Singapore for their cryptocurrency activity and initial coin offering. While there are no apparent bans on cryptocurrency in both jurisdictions, the relevant authorities have extended guidelines to assist businesses, protect investors, and inform stakeholders of their respective risks and obligations. In Hong Kong, SFC has clarified that digital tokens offered in ICO context will be subject to the securities law of Hong Kong, while measures to increase accountability of licensed firms and strengthen corporate governance have also been tightened.
	Talk Around Town Unicorns - From Myth to Reality Entrepreneurship is becoming a popular alternative for Hong Kong youngsters as local start- ups such as GoGoVan and 9GAG turn into some unicorns worth more than a billion US Dollars. Despite the government’s recent policies of spending HK$50 billion in promoting innovation, some argue the efforts in talent attraction and accelerator programmes are insufficient. The long debate on dual-class share structure had the Hong Kong Stock Exchange lost some of the most prominent Chinese tech companies’ listings. With Shenzhen and Singapore stepping up in incubating unicorns, Hong Kong has the urgent need to catch up with neighbouring competitors.