appConfigEntityId

bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

isVideo

articlePageQuery

article

articleSchemaContent

content

hooksArticlePageAdvertisementConfigArticle

hooksArticlePageFloatingButtonConfigArticle

appConfig

filter

json

liveArticle

Simpson Cheung

Hong Kong’s leader has urged the banking sector to support financing the city’s creation of a new economic engine in innovation and technology (I&T) while expanding offshore yuan business, a key area for aligning with national strategies.
Speaking at a Hong Kong Association of Banks event on Friday, Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu called for closer partnership between the government and banking sector in four areas. They are: expanding offshore renminbi business; encouraging I&T through finance; developing commodity trading; and strengthening financial security and market integrity.
“Strategic growth hinges on technological self-reliance and high-quality development. That very much includes the Northern Metropolis,” Lee told the annual Distinguished Speaker Luncheon.
The Northern Metropolis would integrate university town areas with I&T and industry, providing an environment for living, working and travelling, he noted.
“It will become a breakthrough point for our city’s rapid development,” he said.
Lee also pointed to the Northern Metropolis Financial Advisory Task Force, which comprises 23 banks and was set up to support the development through financing.
Authorities are pouring billions of Hong Kong dollars into the megaproject near the border with mainland China, aimed at creating a new engine for I&T.
Beyond issuing bonds to finance new infrastructure, authorities are also encouraging developers and companies to co-develop projects within the Northern Metropolis.




Lee also said Hong Kong, as the world’s largest offshore renminbi business hub, was uniquely positioned to spearhead the yuan’s internationalisation.
This included enriching the yuan liquidity pool, expanding offshore renminbi investment and risk management products, and reinforcing financial market infrastructure.
“The national 15th five-year plan charts the country’s course for high-level opening up and the internationalisation of the renminbi stands as a strategic priority,” he said.
Lee added that the government looked forward to working more closely with banks to innovate yuan-denominated products, enable cross-boundary trade settlement and broaden the global use of the renminbi.
The city would also expand mutual market access schemes with the mainland, including Stock Connect, Bond Connect, Wealth Management Connect and Swap Connect.
Hong Kong was also pursuing developments in commodity trading, with the gold market as an entry point, launching a trial operation of the city’s central clearing and settlement system for gold in July, Lee noted.
He called for strengthening financial security and market integrity as technologies rapidly evolved.
“A thriving international financial centre must be anchored in a safe, trusted and secure environment,” he said.  
Lee said the city’s first five-year plan, to be unveiled on September 16, would help capitalise on the national blueprint.
“The plan will leverage Hong Kong’s unparalleled roles as a ‘superconnector’ and ‘super value-adder’, linking mainland capital and enterprises with global markets while bringing in international capital, technology and talent,” he said.
“It helps that, under ‘one country, two systems’, our institutional strengths – our common law system, free flow of capital, simple and low-tax regime and seamless connectivity with global standards – remain rock solid.”
Sun Yu, chairman of the Hong Kong Association of Banks, said in his speech that the organisation and the banking industry continued to seize new opportunities by deepening engagement with emerging markets while backing the real economy, particularly through efforts to support the accelerated development of the Northern Metropolis and foster transformation of small and medium-sized enterprises.
The association has submitted the Hong Kong Banking 2030 Report to the government, offering recommendations to advance the industry and help the city in consolidating and strengthening its position as an international financial centre. Details of the report will be available next week.
Kevin Tsui Ka-kin, co-founder and director of economic research at the policy think tank Pagoda Institute, said Lee could be appealing to banks to be more generous with loans to the innovation and technology sector.
“But the banks have their own calculations. It is not easy to convince them,” he said.
Tsui noted that local banks had accumulated bad debt in recent years, primarily driven by special loan schemes introduced during the Covid-19 pandemic to assist SMEs, alongside the downturn in property development.
“The chief executive might see this and ask them not to suddenly cut off the credit flow,” Tsui said.
He added that local banks were traditionally conservative when lending to the tech sector due to higher risk. “There are so many projects, so they diversify their investments. Even one hit out of 100 isn’t guaranteed,” he said.
Unlike the US innovation sector, which benefited from a vast ecosystem of venture capital and private funds operating at a much larger investment scale, Hong Kong’s tech start-ups relied heavily on government funding rather than bank financing, he said.
“Banks tend to take low risks and stick to traditional mortgages,” Tsui said.


Gold rebounds after Fed rate rise as banks back long-term demand outlook

Hong Kong’s 5-year plan, policy continuity offer investors more stability, experts say

Hong Kong targets gold trading, FPS-UnionPay link to boost yuan use

Hong Kong aims to raise innovation spending to 3% of GDP by about 2030

Hong Kong economy

John Lee urges banks to finance city’s tech growth, expand offshore yuan business

Authorities are pouring billions of Hong Kong dollars into the Northern Metropolis, a megaproject near the border that aims to power growth in innovation and technology. Photo: Edmond So

Chief Executive John Lee has called on banks to empower the real economy and foster innovation in technology through finance. Photo: Edmond So 

What comes next for Hong Kong as a global financial hub?

Illustration: Henry Wong

Our Hong Kong Foundation vice-president Kenny Shui says yuan globalisation is a key plank of Beijing’s plans for Hong Kong under the 15th national five-year plan. Photo: Elson LI

Mofiz Chan of the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Professionals Association says the city should offer more renminbi-denominated products to boost the yuan’s pricing power among international assets. Photo: Jonathan Wong

Dan Ronald Leung, CEO of Esperanza Fintech Group, says the city needs to help Chinese financial products expand overseas at a time when the US dollar is being “deglobalised”. Photo: Jonathan Wong

Hong Kong was the world’s top IPO destination until June, when billionaire  Elon Musk’s SpaceX listed in New York. Photo: Elson Li

Northern Metropolis: Hong Kong launch pad for Chinese firms

Land tender for flagship Northern Metropolis tech hub draws 6 bids

The Hong Kong-Shenzhen Innovation and Technology Park at the Lok Ma Chau Loop. Photo: Edmond So

News

Hong Kong

Politics

City leader calls for closer partnership between government and banking sector in four areas as Hong Kong seeks strategic growth


City leader calls for closer partnership between government and banking sector in four areas as Hong Kong seeks strategic growth.


John Lee urges banks to finance city’s tech growth, expand offshore yuan business

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}City leader calls for closer partnership between government and banking sector in four areas as Hong Kong seeks strategic growth

City leader calls for closer partnership between government and banking sector in four areas as Hong Kong seeks strategic growth