By Staff Writer
Hong Kong is increasingly becoming a blockchain hub, according to a survey. Nearly 39% of new firms launched in Hong Kong’s fintech sector last year has a blockchain (distributed ledger) component.
Amongst the 57 new fintech startups in Hong Kong, blockchain firms showed the biggest growth, with 39% of all startups having a blockchain component, up from 27% in 2018, according to a latest survey published by Hong Kong’s Financial Services and Treasury Bureau.
By sub-sector, enterprise solutions using blockchain technology accounted for 43%, followed by trading (27%), custodies of digital assets (14%), trade finance and settlement (9%) and companies exploring the area of security tokens (5%).
In terms of the sector, amongst the 57 fintech firms, wealthtech accounted for 20%, followed by payments (16%), Insurtech (9%), RegTec (7), CreditTech (6%) and Cybersecurity (2%) in that order.
Hong Kong and Singapore are both vying to be preeminent fintech hubs in the region. The increase in number of blockchain firms is a positive sign for Hong Kong and that the city state’s efforts at creating more regulatory clarity and sustainable startup ecosystem for blockchain are showing some results.
