John Lee: Hong Kong has over 1,400 fintech companies, ranking second globally; HKEX's IPO fundraising continues to lead the world.

Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu said in his address at the Fintech Week event that the 15th Five-Year Plan points out a clear direction for Hong Kong's cooperation, helping it leverage its advantages, better integrate into and serve the overall national development, consolidate Hong Kong's position as an international financial, shipping and trade center and an international aviation hub, and accelerate Hong Kong's development into an international innovation and technology center and a hub for talent. He pointed out that Hong Kong's first five-year plan outlines the prospects for enterprises, investors and individuals, helping everyone grasp Hong Kong's broad prospects and the abundant opportunities brought by national-level development. John Lee Ka-chiu continued that Hong Kong continues to be ranked first globally for economic freedom and is Asia's leading international financial center. It now has more than 1,400 fintech companies, rising to second place globally. In addition, HKEX's (00388) IPO fundraising amount continues to maintain a global leading position, reflecting investor confidence, and they will continue to deploy capital in Hong Kong. On the other hand, Hong Kong has now become the world's largest cross-border wealth management center. In the asset and wealth management industry, fund inflows surged by about 200% last year, growing for the third consecutive year. In the first nine months of this year, Invest Hong Kong has assisted about 550 overseas and mainland enterprises in setting up or expanding operations in Hong Kong, up 14% year on year, bringing in about US$9 billion in foreign direct investment and creating about 11,000 jobs in the first year of their opening or expansion. John Lee Ka-chiu also mentioned that the Northern Metropolis itself will be built into Hong Kong's new twin engines of "finance in the south, innovation and technology in the north." The north will develop innovation and technology and be connected with Shenzhen, which has strong technology capabilities, and other parts of the Greater Bay Area. The Northern Metropolis accounts for about one-third of Hong Kong's land area and will ultimately accommodate about 2.5 million people and provide more than 500,000 new jobs. In addition, the three university towns will integrate education, technology, industry, talent and urban development, creating an innovation "express train" that connects talent and research to commercialization and industry, and ultimately to capital and global markets. As part of the Hong Kong park of the Shenzhen-Hong Kong Science and Technology Innovation Cooperation Zone, deep cooperation is underway with Shenzhen to plan and build a world-class innovation and technology hub that will promote the cross-border flow of factors such as people, goods, capital and data, and drive innovation. Moreover, Hong Kong will accelerate the commercialization of R&D outcomes, providing industry screening, prototyping, and trial and mass production. With its unique advantages under the principle of "one country, two systems," it has strong intellectual property protection and international standards required for global business. This principle ensures Hong Kong's international orientation and deep integration with the mainland, providing enterprises with a clear path from research to commercialization to scale-up. The goal is to ensure that enterprises have the capability, capital and networks to grow from local operations to mainland and global markets. John Lee Ka-chiu said that Hong Kong plays a key role in building the Greater Bay Area into a world-leading innovation and technology hub and will establish an international cooperation network in the Greater Bay Area's innovation and technology industrial chain, maintaining regional ties with the mainland while expanding international cooperation. Vast and well-connected connectivity drives the international expansion of global enterprises. He also mentioned that during official visits to ASEAN, the Middle East and Central Asia, he personally felt the growing interest in Hong Kong as a trusted business partner, international financial center and cooperation platform. He pointed out that despite broad uncertainties in the global economy, he is confident that Hong Kong's future will be a shared future in business, finance, technology and many other fields. He also said that if one believes technology will define the future, believes Asia will continue to drive global economic growth, and believes China is transforming, then one must believe in Hong Kong's critical position in making all this happen, because in Hong Kong one can access global capital while staying close to the world's most diversified innovation and growth engines.