Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA)

📢The ninth annual Hong Kong FinTech Week 2024 is back and will take place from 28 October to 1 November 2024. Themed “Illuminating New Pathways in Fintech”, this five-day event gathers leading financiers and industry experts from across the globe to explore the future development of fintech. As a co-organiser, the HKMA will be hosting various panels sessions on topics including Central Bank Digital Currencies (#CBDC), tokenisation, data, Decentralised Finance (#DeFi), Generative A.I. (#GenAI) and more. Don’t miss this exciting opportunity! Reserve your ticket now: https://lnkd.in/gsSXNyU   #HKFTW #HKFTW24 #HKMA #FinTechHK #fintech 

Congratulations to the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ) on a successful Hong Kong Chapter launch! This new chapter aims to engage regional financial institutions to build capacity for transition planning and transition finance. At the launch ceremony, Eddie Yue, Chief Executive of the HKMA, also Advisor to the Hong Kong Chapter, delivered the opening remarks. In his words, “I see great synergy between GFANZ and Hong Kong – the world’s largest net-zero coalition of financial institutions, and Asia’s leading sustainable finance centre. GFANZ can enrich Hong Kong’s sustainable finance ecosystem, just as Hong Kong can add to GFANZ’s net-zero efforts in Greater China, APAC and beyond.” Joining him were Mary Schapiro, Vice Chair of Global Public Policy at Bloomberg and Vice Chair and Head of the GFANZ Secretariat, and Ma Jun, Chairman of the Hong Kong Green Finance Association (HKGFA) and Advisor to the Hong Kong Chapter. Other notable speakers at the launch ceremony included Yuki Yasui, Managing Director of the GFANZ APAC Network; Manshu Deng, Director of the GFANZ Hong Kong Chapter; Julia Leung, Chief Executive Officer of the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) of Hong Kong; Bonnie Y Chan, Chief Executive Officer of Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited (HKEX); Luanne Lim, Chief Executive of HSBC Hong Kong; and Thijs Aaten, Chief Executive Officer of APG Asset Management Asia. New collaborative initiatives are already underway. For instance, we are exploring ways to collaborate on sector-specific operational guidance, making it easier for financial institutions to develop their own transition finance strategies and better meet their clients’ transition needs. Follow our page for updates on our ongoing net-zero efforts to build a more sustainable future. #HKMA #GFANZ #HongKong #climateaction #transitionfinance #sustainability

The HKMA and the Hong Kong Association of Banks fully support the "Banking Industry Integrity Charter" introduced by the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) and co-hosted a launch ceremony today with the ICAC. Senior management from 30 banks attended the launch, including major retail banks and private wealth management banks in Hong Kong, along with representatives of the Chinese Banking Association of Hong Kong and the Private Wealth Management Association (PWMA). The ICAC launched the Integrity Charter to create a platform for communication through public-private partnerships, helping banks to implement effective integrity management and anti-corruption measures. Banks participating in the Integrity Charter will commit to further strengthening their internal anti-corruption capabilities and foster a culture of integrity among their business partners. In his remarks, the HKMA Chief Executive Eddie Yue welcomed the launch of the Integrity Charter and emphasised its role to support efforts in building integrity within the banking sector, and ensuring public trust in the industry. He encouraged banks to participate and contribute to enhancing Hong Kong's status as an international finance centre. For more information on the Integrity Charter, read here: https://lnkd.in/g8PkaFyD

Today, the HKMA held an engagement session with around 40 representatives of the commercial and banking sectors, together with The Hong Kong Association of Banks (HKAB) and the Chinese Banking Association of Hong Kong. The meeting provided a useful platform for the HKMA and the banking sector to better understand the business challenges and financing needs of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) from a wide range of sectors such as wholesale and retail, tourism, IT, real estate, transport and logistics, textile and garment, furniture and decoration, and pharmaceutical. The participating banks reiterated their dedicated financing and support for the SME community in Hong Kong, and their commitment to enabling SMEs to seize opportunities for growth and transformation. The HKMA-HKAB joint Taskforce on SME Lending will continue to foster closer communication among the HKMA, the banking industry, and the commercial sector through seminars and other outreach activities, with the aim of supporting SMEs’ development, upgrade, and transformation. Learn more about how the HKMA and the banking sector support SMEs: https://lnkd.in/g82aK2ys #HKMA #HKAB #HongKongBusinessCommunityJointConference #SME #Banking #Taskforce #BusinessGrowth #EconomicGrowth #HongKongEconomy

Furthering our exploration into Artificial Intelligence (A.I.), this second edition of our video series “Fintech Transformations” shows how A.I. is accelerating innovation in Fintech. A.I. has been ushering in innovative breakthroughs and reshaping customer experiences across multiple industries. The rise and rapid adoption of A.I., especially Generative A.I. (GenA.I.), is driving significant transformation in financial services, redefining business operations, and creating new standards of digital evolution in finance. In this episode, a collaboration between the HKMA and the Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes Authority (MPFA) is featured, and KPMG China’s Wilson Xu takes us through the latest A.I. market movements. Michael Y. from Google Hong Kong explores the potential of GenA.I. to real-world experiences. The video also shines a spotlight on an inspiring collaboration story, featuring Kevin Li from Syfe and Jeanie Ho from Manulife. Watch the video to learn more about how A.I. is shaping the future of finance. #AI #GenAI #FintechPromotionRoadmap

Last week, HKMA announced the expansion of Project e-HKD to delve deeper into innovative use cases for new forms of digital money that can potentially be used by individuals and corporates. Given the expanded coverage, the project has been renamed as Project e-HKD+, reflecting our commitment to digital money innovation. Under Project e-HKD+, we’ve commenced Phase 2 of the e-HKD Pilot Programme, bringing together 11 groups of diverse firms to explore innovative applications for digital money. We’re excited to initially focus on two key forms of digital money: 🪙 e-HKD: Hong Kong's central bank digital currency 🏦 Tokenised deposits: Tokenised form of bank deposits Selected firms will be looking at three main themes: 🎟️ Settlement of tokenised assets 💻 Programmability 🔘 Offline payments The outcomes will help the HKMA understand the practical challenges that may be faced in designing, implementing and operating a digital money ecosystem that comprises of both publicly and privately-issued digital money. Project e-HKD+ will not only advance the technology but also the legal groundwork to support the potential issuance of e-HKD for the use of individuals and corporates in the future. For more information on the firms participating in the e-HKD Pilot Programme Phase 2, please visit https://lnkd.in/gaSyKQZp #HKMA #eHKDplus #DigitalMoney #FinancialInnovation

📅 In one weeks’ time, the Hong Kong Green Finance Association (HKGFA)’s seventh annual forum titled “Financing Asia’s Net Zero Transition” will kick off on 9 October 2024. The conference will foster cross-border dialogue around sustainable finance, green technology, and product innovation. Kenneth Hui, Executive Director (External) of the HKMA, will also join a distinguished panel of speakers for a fireside chat: “A Regional Stock Take on Asia’s Progress To Net-Zero”. They will review current progress around the region, analyse key policies, discuss collaboration opportunities, among others. In-person and virtual attendance are available. Don’t miss out and register now: https://lnkd.in/gGY76J4D The HKMA is the supporting organisation for this event. #2024HKGFAAF #greenfinance #sustainablefinance #netzero #financialsolutions #innovation #sustainability

The HKMA has released the conclusions of its public consultation on information sharing among Authorized Institutions to aid in prevention or detection of crime. Following issuance of the consultation in January 2024, we received 18 submissions from the banking industry, professional associations, public sector, law enforcement agencies, relevant firms and organisations and members of the public. The conclusions include the HKMA’s responses and set out the next steps.   Respondents raise a number of key issues: - Respondents generally support the proposal and agree that information sharing among banks should be voluntary. - The scope should include proliferation financing in addition to fraud, money laundering and terrorist financing. - Clear rules and guidance are needed on the circumstances in which information may be shared. - The Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data (PCPD) provided comments from the perspective of protection of personal data privacy and interaction of the proposal with the Personal Data (Privacy) Ordinance (Cap. 486) (PDPO). The HKMA will take into account the submissions and proceed with preparation of the necessary amendments, which will form part of the overall review of the Banking Ordinance. In the meantime, we will continue to engage stakeholders on practical matters relating to implementation of the proposal.   The consultation conclusions document can be viewed here: https://lnkd.in/gAspNG3S   #HKMA #InformationSharing #PublicConsultation

Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenA.I.) is transforming the financial services industry with its innovative capabilities, and its adoption is accelerating among a growing number of financial institutions in Hong Kong’s banking, securities and insurance sectors. This latest GenA.I. research report aims to facilitate a better understanding of the intricacies involved and drive responsible innovation. It shares good practices across different stages of the adoption process, emphasises the necessity for robust governance frameworks, and encourages continued collaboration among regulators, financial institutions and technology providers. Financial institutions are encouraged to keep exploring the immense potential of GenA.I., while effectively managing the associated risks. We appreciate all insights provided in industry surveys and in-depth interviews. Read the GenA.I. research paper published by the HKMA today: https://lnkd.in/g3RBxxEr Special thanks go to the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC), the Insurance Authority, Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes Authority (MPFA), as well as Quinlan & Associates and KPMG China #AI #GenAI #FintechPromotionRoadmap

The HKMA’s Half-Yearly Monetary and Financial Stability Report (September 2024) is out now. We review the economic environment, Hong Kong monetary and financial conditions, bank performance, and more. 📈 With the global economy generally holding up well during the review period, Hong Kong is showing resilience amid a complex global economic outlook, with its exchange rate and interbank market continuing to trade in an orderly manner. While some growth is expected to continue, banks should continue taking a more vigilant approach. Highlights: ⬆️ Hong Kong’s economy grew at a moderate pace in 1H 2024, primarily driven by stronger goods exports. 💰 Increase in total deposits shows that investors are still confident in Hong Kong. 👨🏻👩🏻👧🏻 Households across the city have remained financially sound as debt-to-GDP ratio lowered slightly. 🏠 Housing market has softened since May after improving somewhat following the policy relaxations announced in late February. ✅ While the classified loan ratio increased in 1H 2024, it remained at a manageable level. View the one-pager highlighted summary, or read the full report and analysis here: https://lnkd.in/gfM4SN7F