The Bank of Singapore, the private banking arm of OCBC, has appointed Rickie Chan as the new Chief Executive Officer of its Hong Kong branch. The announcement was made earlier today, confirming Rickie’s additional responsibilities alongside his current Head of Private Banking, Greater China role. Rickie brings over 28 years of experience in the financial services sector to his new role. He joined the Bank of Singapore in February 2024, following a distinguished career with several leading institutions.  His previous roles include CEO of Credit Suisse’s Hong Kong branch and Greater China H ..read more

KPay, a fintech and payments company based in Hong Kong, has expanded its operations to Singapore by establishing a headquarters there. The company currently partners with over 30,000 merchants across Asia, including 3,000 in Singapore. To support this growth, the company aims to increase its merchant base in Singapore from 3,000 to over 10,000 and double its local workforce to more than 100 employees. According to KPay, the expansion is part of the company’s strategy to accelerate digital transformation in the Asia Pacific region. This move underscores the company’s commitment to enhancing it ..read more

Credit Data Smart is scheduled to launch on 26 April, marking a significant step in the “Fintech 2025” strategy aimed at enhancing Hong Kong’s data infrastructure for financial technology. The launch is in collaboration with the Hong Kong Association of Banks, the Hong Kong Association of Restricted Licence Banks and Deposit-taking Companies, and the Hong Kong S.A.R. Licensed Money Lenders Association Limited. This initiative supports introducing multiple consumer credit reference agencies (CRAs) in Hong Kong. It enhances market competition and service quality and reduces the operational risk ..read more

Imagine a world where you can access all your banking needs at your fingertips without ever having to step into a physical branch. That’s the promise of virtual banks in Hong Kong – a new breed of digital-only financial institutions redefining how we think about banking. Leading the way in Asia, Hong Kong’s virtual banks have set a precedent for the region, demonstrating how technology can transform financial services. Virtual banks have disrupted the traditional banking model, offering new opportunities for consumers and businesses. By harnessing advanced technology, they have optimised finan ..read more

In a move reflecting the challenging market conditions in the Asia-Pacific region, particularly in Hong Kong and China, global investment banks Morgan Stanley and HSBC have recently implemented targeted job cuts within their investment banking teams. Sources indicate that Morgan Stanley has laid off approximately 50 bankers in the Asia-Pacific region, excluding Japan, with 80 percent of the affected individuals based in China and Hong Kong. The cuts come amidst a challenging market environment, as evidenced by the bank’s first-quarter results, which showed a 12 percent year-on-year decline in ..read more

Endowus, an independent digital wealth advisor in Asia, has officially launched its comprehensive wealth management platform in Hong Kong. The launch follows significant technological enhancements aimed at better serving local investors. The platform includes a bilingual, full-featured version of the Endowus app. This development caters to a broad range of investors, from novices to experienced individuals, by allowing users to tailor investment portfolios to their specific financial goals or to invest directly in funds through the Endowus Fund Smart platform. The updated app also introduces c ..read more

Mox Bank has appointed Igor Lau as the new Chief Customer Officer (CCO), effective 1 April 2024. Igor Lau steps into this role with significant industry experience, having served in various capacities within Mox, including a stint as Interim CCO since early 2023. As CCO, Igor will oversee the development and refinement of Mox’s customer experience strategies. His responsibilities encompass customer experience design, brand proposition development, strategic partnerships, and analytics. Igor’s professional background includes over 22 years in building customer relationships and brand management ..read more

In Hong Kong, financial services ranked second among the most targeted industries for suspected digital fraud last year, tied with travel and leisure at 7.8% each, new data released by American consumer credit reporting agency TransUnion show. In 2023, the financial services sector experienced a staggering 190% year-over-year (YoY) increase in suspected digital fraud compared to the previous year, marking the highest growth rate across all industries analyzed. The data, released as part of the 2024 State of Omnichannel Fraud Report, draw on proprietary insights from TransUnion’s global intelli ..read more

Hong Kong has taken a significant step by granting initial approvals to three Chinese asset managers to launch exchange-traded funds (ETFs) backed by spot virtual assets such as Bitcoin and Ether. This initiative is part of Hong Kong’s ongoing strategy to integrate digital assets into its financial ecosystem and attract global fintech innovation. Harvest Global Investments Ltd., Bosera Asset Management (International) Co. Ltd., and China Asset Management (Hong Kong) Ltd., all subsidiaries of leading Chinese mutual fund companies, received the go-ahead in principle from the SFC. Each company an ..read more

ZA Bank has launched a new business loan in collaboration with Global Payments Asia-Pacific (Hong Kong) Limited, a subsidiary of Global Payments. This partnership allows eligible merchants within the Global Payments ecosystem to quickly and easily obtain ZA Bank’s pre-approved credit facilities without the need for traditional bank statements or financial reports. This initiative is a part of the bank’s commitment to leveraging technology to improve the financing options available to SMEs in Hong Kong, which aligns with recent initiatives by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA). ZA Bank str ..read more