The Z/Yen Group has today published its report, “An Enabling Regulatory Framework for Innovation: Web3 & FinTech”, commissioned by the Hong Kong Financial Services Development Council. The report explores the development of regulatory approaches in the context of the introduction of Web3, which is designed to enhance the machine readability of web content and foster a more intelligent, interconnected, and decentralised internet architecture.

Around the world, policymakers have grasped the value that FinTech can add to their national economies. Some, such as Australia and the UK (in 2016), were early adopters and established programmes to facilitate the deployment of technology across their financial sectors. Despite the variations in policies, licensing, and legal requirements across different jurisdictions, the race to maximise relative competitiveness in this field has been joined.

The Hong Kong SAR Government has actively fostered the development of Web3 technologies, aiming to broaden their adoption and bolster Hong Kong’s status as a leading international financial centre. A policy statement on the development of virtual assets in Hong Kong was issued in October 2022, followed by the implementation of a comprehensive regulatory framework.

The report can be found here: https://www.zyen.com/publications/public-reports/an-enabling-regulatory-framework-for-innovation-web3-fintech/

Commenting on the report, Mike Wardle, Chief Executive Officer at the Z/Yen Group said:

“The rise of Web3 technologies presents numerous opportunities for the development of new approaches to FinTech and innovative offers for consumers. Alongside these developments, establishing an enabling regulatory framework - fostered through close dialogue between public and private sectors – is crucial to balancing innovation with consumer protection. Globally, we are witnessing progress in this area, with Hong Kong’s Web3 and FinTech ecosystem standing out as one of the shining examples of such an enabling regulatory framework.”

Laurence Li SC, Chairman of the FSDC said:

“Hong Kong has made considerable efforts to align with global trends and establish itself as a hub for innovation, technology, and financial services, strengthening its position as an international financial centre. This progress is particularly evident in its development of Web3 technologies and FinTech applications. With the Hong Kong SAR Government’s strategic foresight and continued efforts to refine and adapt the regulatory framework of Web3 and FinTech, we expect even more vibrant progress, driven by cross-sector and cross-border collaborations."

ENDS

Information For Editors:

Z/Yen is the City of London’s leading commercial think-tank, founded to promote societal advance through better finance and technology. Z/Yen ‘asks, solves, and acts’ on strategy, finance, systems, marketing, science, and intelligence projects in a wide variety of fields. Z/Yen manages the Long Finance initiative.

Long Finance

GFCI is part of the Long Finance initiative (www.longfinance.net), which undertakes research programmes on Financial Centre Futures, Sustainable Futures, Distributed Futures, Eternal Coin, and Meta-Commerce. Please get in touch for more details on Long Finance.

About the FSDC

The FSDC was established in 2013 by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government as a high-level, cross-sectoral advisory body to engage the industry in formulating proposals to promote the further development of the financial services industry of Hong Kong and to map out the strategic direction for the development.

The FSDC has been incorporated as a company limited by guarantee with effect from September 2018 to allow it to better discharge its functions through research, market promotion and human capital development with more flexibility.

Contact

For more information please email Mike Wardle at mike_wardle@zyen.com or by phone on +44 (0) 20 7562 9562 or +44 (0) 7880 737319.