The rivalry between Hong Kong and Singapore has spanned decades and shows no sign of letting up. This time the competition is to see who can be the leading Financial Technology hub in Asia.
The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) greatly upped the ante when it recently announced the first Fintech Festival, which will be held in the city-state in November.
The country regulator has been keen to engage and stay ahead of the fintech curve and has organised in partnership with the Association of Banks in Singapore (ABS), a week-long festival, the first of its kind in Asia,which will bring together a series of distinct, back-to-back fintech events.
The Festival will provide a platform for collaborations, connections and co-creations within the Fintech ecosystem in Singapore and around the region.
One Step Ahead
In Hong Kong the progressive activity in Singapore has not gone unnoticed and key industry players are expressing concerns that Singapore could be gaining an edge by have the MAS directly engaged.
A report in the South China Morning Post highlights the comments of Ian Wood, (pictured) a partner at international law firm Simmons and Simmons, who specialises in regulatory matters. According to Wood Hong Kong was now «a little bit» behind Singapore in terms of fintech development.
He pointed out that what the Hong Kong government’s steering group on fintech was proposing had already been achieved in Singapore.
