November 1 to November 5, 2021, we’ll be looking for the next big thing at one of the top FinTech events around the world.
Headline Will Be Discovering New FinTech Stars at HK FinTech Week 2021
Hong Kong Fintech Week 2021 will take place on November 1 to November 5, 2021, gathering global investors, business professionals, leading firms, and entrepreneurs in shaping the future of the Asian FinTech market in Hong Kong. Headline, one of the investor champions in Global Fast Track, will be meeting and discovering new stars in Hong Kong FinTech Week 2021.
Our FinTech Portfolio Companies
FinTech is a sector in which we are deeply invested. Companies in our FinTech portfolio hail from Japan, Taiwan, Thailand, Mainland China, and of course, Hong Kong.
- freee k.k.: A cloud-based accounting startup partnered with over 270 banks and financial institutions. Founded in 2012, freee k.k provides HR and Accounting software in Japan.
- WealthNavi: Founded in 2015, WealthNavi connects individual investors and financial markets, offering asset management and risk tolerance to clients by using their algorithm for asset management advice.
- Handii: Handii, the fintech startup, provides “paild”, a service that allows you to issue corporate cards with a single click.
- Liangzibao: Liangzibao is a B2B2C insurance service platform providing customized solutions like dynamic premiums and big data actuarial, and more. They help companies and individuals reduce costs, reduce risks, and recognize the value.
- Yeahka: In 2019, Yeahka was declared the second largest non-bank independent QR code payment service provider in China. Established in 2011, Yeahka provides payment and business services to merchants and consumers.
- Ksher: Founded in 2016, Ksher operates in more than nine countries around the world, providing various user-friendly payment services that help expand the business and attract target consumers.
- MaiCoin: MaiCoin was established in 2014 and is the largest digital asset brokerage in Taiwan. They are the first trading platform in Taiwan to offer NTD to exchange ETH, LTC, PAXG, and DAI.
Investing in FinTech is Investing in the Future
As Asia’s international financial center, Hong Kong offers a unique environment that allows FinTech startups to rapidly scale up their business. This is thanks to its international environment, a supportive government which offers a number of government funding schemes to incentivize FinTech companies (including FinTech Anti-epidemic Scheme for Talent Development or FAST, and a multicultural talent pool.
We believe that the Asia’s FinTech industry will be a world leader, and we are investing in the future. At this year’s Hong Kong FinTech Week, we’re expecting to meet amazing startups that have the potential to challenge and change the world.
600+ FinTech Startups
The first Hong Kong FinTech Week was held in 2016. In five years, the number of FinTech companies and startups has increased to over 600 in 2021, growing by 275 percent, according to Development of Financial Technologies by Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau, Hong Kong. Over 60 percent of Hong Kong FinTech are focused on the B2B market.
The Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEX) has been ranked first in IPO revenue worldwide in seven of the last 12 years. Last year, during the global economic recession caused by the pandemic, a total of 154 companies raised HK$398 billion, making HKEX in the leading position in the IPO fundraising market.
The vibrant market provides plenty of opportunities for startups. Hong Kong’s FinTech industry is one that cannot be ignored. About 46 percent of Hong Kong FinTech companies are at least three years old and many of them have been world-class players in the field. Five out of eight Hong Kong unicorn companies are FinTech stars, including WeLab, Bowtie Life Insurance, and OneDegree which have been named in KPMG Top Fintech 100 in 2019.
Hong Kong FinTech Ecosystem by Invest HK
“All Banks Go FinTech” Government Strategy
In June 2021, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) unveiled its “Fintech 2025” strategy to encourage the financial sector to adopt technology comprehensively by 2025. “All banks go FinTech” has been mentioned in the first place of the five focused areas in the announcement:
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“The HKMA will continue to promote the all-round adoption of FinTech by Hong Kong banks and encourage them to fully digitalize their operations…The HKMA will issue further supervisory guidance to facilitate the uptake of novel technologies and continue to ‘walk the talk’ by digitalizing its supervision of banks through the use of advanced technologies.””
As we introduced in All of the Virtual Banks of Asia in 2021 So Far, HKMA has issued eight virtual banking licenses in 2019. No virtual bank license has been issued since then, but with the new strategy, the FinTech adoption of the existing 160+ Hong Kong banks is going to play a crucial role in accelerating the whole FinTech ecosystem in Hong Kong.
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