HSBC, StanChart Optimistic About Hong Kong’s Fintech Outlook
The CEOs of HSBC and Standard Chartered spoke during the Hong Kong FinTech Week about the city's hub status and expressed bullishness about the outlook ahead in digital assets, AI and more.
HSBC CEO Georges Elhedery and Standard Chartered CEO Bill Winters spoke on a panel during 2025's Hong Kong FinTech Week, which is celebrating its 10th anniversary, about the role of the city as an international financial center.
The two expressed optimism across a number of topics related to technology, including digital assets, blockchain and artificial intelligence (AI).
Full Blockchain Settlement
On blockchain, Winters spoke about a vision that money and settlements in the future will transition away from traditional means.
«Our belief, which I think is shared by the leadership of Hong Kong, is that pretty much all transactions will settle on blockchains eventually and that all money will be digital,» he proclaimed. «Think about what that means – a complete rewiring of the financial system. But we don't know exactly how.»
AI: Efficiency and Adoption
On AI, Elhedery highlighted the unique approach in Asia, especially mainland China and Hong Kong, that has differed from the US, which has relied on cutting-edge innovation, and Europe, which has focused on safety via regulations. This includes the showcasing of efficiency and speed of delivery, as evidenced by the DeepSeek moment, as well as the mass adoption of such emerging technologies.
«This has really been an eye-opener,» he said.
Tech Milestones
Both HSBC and Standard Chartered have been actively rolling out new fintech developments in Hong Kong, especially with regard to digital assets. At HSBC, for example, it made several local debuts, including being the first to complete a local blockchain-based settlement and the first to launch tokenized gold. Standard Chartered has also made similar efforts with its leadership in crypto custody and pioneering tokenized money market funds.
«I can spend the next half hour explaining why we believe Hong Kong is the right place, but I'm going to give you one piece of information,» Elhedery added.
«On the 9th of October, HSBC has announced an investment of more than HK$100 billion ($13 billion) in Hong Kong for the acquisition of the minority shareholding of Hang Seng Bank. This hopefully summarizes how much confidence and how much conviction we have in the outlook for Hong Kong.»
