Ironically, the city that should have been first to be swept up by China’s fintech revolution is still a picture of old-world conservatism. Not for long, though. Hong Kong, whose last big innovation in retail payments is as old as the former British colony’s 1997 handover to China, is on the cusp of big change. The Hong Kong Monetary Authority’s revised May 30 guidelines for online-only banks will lead to the first licenses being issued by the end of this year. More than 50 parties, including the likes of homegrown fintech players such as WeLab Ltd., backed by billionaire Li Ka-shing, have evinced interest, even though the minimum capital requirement has been set at a not-insignificant HK$300 million ($38 million). And these will have to be real business plans, marrying traditional risk management with technology; concepts alone won’t fly, the HKMA has told applicants. Still, the prize will be … [Read more...] about Hong Kong Banks, Meet the 21st Century
Licensed bank in hong kong
China and the U.S. Seek Allies to Strengthen Sides in Trade Tussle
The U.S. and China look to be preparing for a protracted confrontation over trade and investment as they each try to line up allies for their cause.The struggle for support is being waged worldwide, with its locus shifting this week to Washington and the semi-annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund. Behind the battle: an effort by each country to gain an edge in their standoff over everything from steel to semiconductors.Much of the jockeying is likely to play out at Thursday’s meeting of finance ministers and central bankers from the Group of 20 and Saturday’s broader gathering of IMF member nations.“There’s a competition” between the world’s two-largest economies to garner backing for their respective positions, said David Dollar, who was the U.S. Treasury’s economic emissary to China from 2009 to 2013 and is now a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution in Washington.The concerted attempts at coalition-building suggest that … [Read more...] about China and the U.S. Seek Allies to Strengthen Sides in Trade Tussle
Xi Vows to Ease Foreign Ownership in Financial Firms in 2018
Chinese President Xi Jinping vowed to push ahead with efforts to open the nation’s financial industry this year even as a trade dispute with the U.S. heats up.China will ensure policies announced last November to remove foreign ownership limits on banks, brokerages and insurers will be implemented in 2018, Xi said at the Boao Forum in Hainan on Tuesday. The nation will accelerate opening of its insurance industry, as well as ease requirements for foreign financial institutions to set up operations and expand their business scope, he added.Xi gave a deadline for freeing up the nation’s $40 trillion financial sector despite trade tensions stemming from U.S. President Donald Trump’s plans to impose tariffs on Chinese exports. In November, China said it will remove foreign ownership limits on banks and allow overseas firms to take majority stakes in local securities ventures -- part of its efforts to “substantially” ease barriers in the industry.JPMorgan Chase … [Read more...] about Xi Vows to Ease Foreign Ownership in Financial Firms in 2018
World Bank provides $10 million loan to Moldova for education reform
RISE outlined the scheme by which the buffer company in the separatist region became the main electricity supplier overnight, earned millions of profits and hid them in tax havens. Only around 20% of the country’s total electricity demand is produced on the territory of the Republic of Moldova on the right bank of the River Nistru. In recent years, the battle for Moldova’s electricity supply contract has usually been made between two regional players: a representative of the Ukrainian group DTEK, which is part of the business empire of Ukrainian billionaire Rinat Akhmetov, and the Cuciurgan plant, which is owned by the giant Inter RAO UES, controlled by the Russian state. Source: MediaCenter (The Cuciurgan plant) How EnergoKapital appeared in the scheme: After the spring of 2014, when the Ministry of Economy announced that between April 1, 2014, and April 1, 2015, the Republic of Moldova bought electricity from DTEK Vostokenergo and from the Cuciurgan plant, due … [Read more...] about World Bank provides $10 million loan to Moldova for education reform
JD.com’s finance unit aims to raise $1.9 billion in fresh funding -sources
By Julie Zhu HONG KONG (Reuters) – JD.com Inc’s <JD.O> finance arm is looking to raise about 12 billion yuan (1.36 billion pounds) in fresh equity that could see its value double from last year to more than $20 billion, three people with knowledge of the matter said. The unit of China’s second-largest e-commerce firm wants to deepen its push into areas such as securities, banking and insurance – businesses that have seen the entry of several new technology-focused players. The move adds to an already hectic pace of fundraising by Chinese tech firms keen to respond to burgeoning demand for digital services, especially in the financial sector. The fundraising by JD Finance kicked off late last year and is expected to be finalised in the coming weeks, the people said, declining to be identified as details of the deal were not public. Investor enthusiasm for Chinese tech stocks has jumped over the past year. The unit was valued at about 60 billion yuan ($9.5 … [Read more...] about JD.com’s finance unit aims to raise $1.9 billion in fresh funding -sources