In 2019, Hong Kong issued eight virtual banking licences to companies including Ant Financial, and consortia involving Standard Chartered and Tencent. When the new licences were issued in March and April 2019, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority said it expected the banks to begin operating in six to nine months, but launches were delayed by anti-government protests.
According to Reuters, the new banks could make a difference to Hong Kong’s retail banking sector, which is now dominated by lenders such as HSBC, Bank of China and Standard Chartered.
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