Invest Hong Kong (InvestHK) today (January 13) announced that its fifth annual Hong Kong Fintech Week will take place from November 2 to 6 at AsiaWorld-Expo in Hong Kong and in Shenzhen. InvestHK also outlined some of its activities and programmes planned for the months leading up to the region's only cross-boundary fintech trade show.
 
     Hong Kong Fintech Week 2020 will return to AsiaWorld-Expo, a venue that it moved to in 2019, in order to accommodate an ever-growing number of participants and greater variety in the programme. This year's event will build on that growth and again run its signature cross-boundary Shenzhen day, part of a broader focus on the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, while also picking up on some of the key themes addressed in 2019 and the coming year.
 
     The build-up for Hong Kong Fintech Week 2020 starts this month with the first-ever FintechHK Startup Salon at the Asian Financial Forum (AFF) on January 13 and 14 at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre. The Salon, organised by InvestHK, the Hong Kong Trade Development Council and the Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau, is a new initiative to help early stage fintech start-ups connect and exchange ideas with potential investors, and to introduce their latest solutions and innovations to conference participants.
 
     Associate Director-General of Investment Promotion at InvestHK Mr Charles Ng said, "The results of 2019 in terms of exhibitors, attendees and participant feedback exceeded all expectations. As Hong Kong Fintech Week celebrates the fifth anniversary this year, we will build on the success of last year's event and develop more business-oriented programmes for the global fintech communities, such as the FintechHK Global Competition, Fast Track and roadshows." Last year's Fintech Week drew more than 12,000 attendees, up about 50 per cent from the figure in the previous year, and there were 150 exhibitors and 18 trade delegations.
 
     Throughout 2020, fintech start-ups from around the world will have the opportunity to participate in the Fintech Week signature programmes. The FintechHK Global Competition is always in the spotlight. Last year, semi-finals were held in different locations around the world, including Mainland China, Kuala Lumpur, London, San Francisco, Toronto and Hong Kong, with the winners invited to Hong Kong for the final at Fintech Week. Last year's winner, sync., earned an investment commitment worth up to US$500,000. 
 
     Riding on the success of the last two years, Fast Track, a one-stop platform with professional consultation and mentorship to assist worldwide fintech companies to launch their business in Hong Kong, will expand its scale and efforts globally. The Deal Floor, which had a show-up rate of over 85 per cent (higher than the industry average), will be further enhanced for customised business matching.
  
     Hong Kong's fintech sector is growing fast. The city is now home to more than 600 fintech companies, up around 10 per cent from the figure a year earlier. 51 per cent of the interviewed companies said they are operating in or plan to expand into other parts of the Greater Bay Area and 53 per cent view Hong Kong as a base for global expansion. The city's financial services sector is the largest in the region, with more than 160 licensed banks, including eight new virtual banks, and over 160 authorised insurers, making it a major draw for fintech companies.
 
     "The FintechHK Startup Salon at the AFF showcases the strengths of the vibrant Hong Kong fintech ecosystem supported by public and private stakeholders. It also covers all aspects of fintech, including blockchain, insurtech, regtech, payment tech, wealth tech, quants and algorithmic trading. It complements perfectly the AFF, which focuses on mainstream financial services, and will help build momentum for Fintech Week later in the year. We welcome the participants to visit the Salon and discover further the exciting Hong Kong Fintech Week 2020 there," Mr Ng added.
 
     For more details about Hong Kong Fintech Week 2020, please go to www.fintechweek.hk or follow InvestHK's social media accounts:
Twitter: @HongKongFinTech / #HKFintechWeek
LinkedIn: bit.ly/2WDSjB9
YouTube: bit.ly/2MKM7oM 
 
About InvestHK

     InvestHK is the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government department responsible for foreign direct investment. It has set up a dedicated fintech team in Hong Kong with correspondents located in Mainland China, London and San Francisco. It aims at attracting the world's top innovative fintech enterprises, start-up entrepreneurs, investors and other stakeholders to expand and scale their business via Hong Kong to Mainland China, Asia and beyond. 

Ends/Monday, January 13, 2020
Issued at HKT 9:00

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