To foster collaboration in the financial sector between Hong Kong and the Middle East under the “Belt and Road Initiative”, Cyberport startups spanning across the fields of WealthTech, Insurtech, RegTech, Blockchain, ESG and beyond visited Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) with a Mainland and HKSAR delegation in early May.
The Delegation, led by the Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau (FSTB), Financial Services Development Council (FSDC), and InvestHK, along with Cyberport startups participated in various activities, visited financial institutions and met with local regulators, business leaders, and venture capitalists to explore a wide range of cooperation opportunities in the aforementioned countries during their nine-day Middle East trip.
One of the highlights of the trip was the signing ceremony of the Memorandum of Understanding between the Qatar Financial Centre and the FSDC. During the ceremony, Joseph Chan, Under Secretary of Financial Services and the Treasury, delivered a welcome speech and Daniel Fung, Vice Chairman of FSDC, delivered a keynote speech.
Meanwhile, Cyberport community members also actively joined activities in the Middle East trip. Carbonbase was invited to participate in the Boao Forum for Asia Riyadh Conference - Sustainability Development Roundtable. While Aereve joined FinTech leaders from Qatar, the UAE, India, the US, the UK and Hong Kong on the first day of the Dubai FinTech Summit at the Leaders Sharing the Future roundtable organised by Dubai International Financial Centre.
Overall, the Delegation and Cyberport startups had a fruitful visit in the Middle East, and they said it was not only effective in promoting Hong Kong's strengths in the fintech sector, but also a trip that opened up new business opportunities.
