These are interesting times for Hong Kongโs nascent startup scene, as the city grapples with Chinaโs slowing economy and struggles to define itself in an increasingly globalized world. As a small market home to 7 million people, Hong Kong will have to specialize and claim something as its own, in the same way that markets like Israel and Singapore have with tech R&D and fintech, respectively.
โIf you just look at fintech, itโs having a vibrant ecosystem in Hong Kong,โ said Gregory So Kam-Leung, the Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, at fintech accelerator SuperChargerโs demo day on Thursday. โWe seeโฆDBS, Accenture, and Nest, and of course TusPark, all coming to Hong Kong, really pointing the direction that we have something going really good right now.โ
Along with IoT, government officials, as well as other players in Hong Kongโs startup scene, see fintech as a potential pillar for the cityโs startup ecosystem. Hong Kong is one of the top financial centers of the world, and ex-bankers, such as David Rosa, one of the entrepreneurs in SuperChargerโs batch, have jumped into the fintech space, eager to apply their banking knowledge in a less rigid environment.
However, whether or not Hong Kongโs strength in traditional banking will translate over to fintech, remains to be seen.
โIf youโre talking about fintech, it matters if youโre talking about fin or tech,โ says Dong Shou, the CTO of Wecash, a Beijing-based startup in SuperChargerโs batch. โIf youโre talking about fin, definitely. But if youโre talking about tech, Iโm not so sure if Hong Kong can compete with mainland cities like Beijing.โ
Hong Kongโs government is keen on promoting fintech and has even created a dedicated fintech team under Invest Hong Kong, a government organization aimed at โattract[ing] and retain[ing] foreign direct investment,โ according to its website. In January, Hong Kongโs Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying announced a HK$2 billion ($257.8 million USD) โInnovation and Technology Venture Fundโ for early-stage startups, and Cyberport, a state-owned โinnovation and technology hubโ, announced in February that it would dedicate three thousand square meters of its co-working area to fintech startups over the next five years.
At SuperChargerโs demo day on Thursday, the acceleratorโs first batch of eight startups pitched their companies and products, from bitcoin exchange Gatecoin to cashless payments startup Eko. Founded in 2015, the Hong Kong-based accelerator is backed by three corporate sponsors: Standard Chartered Bank, Baidu, and TusPark Global Network.
Here are the eight SuperCharger startups that pitched on Thursday:
Neat
Neat is a digital banking solution aimed at millennials. Users can open a Neat bank account through Neatโs smartphone app, which uses facial recognition to authenticate the user on the frontend. The startup is working with an undisclosed regulatory partner to conduct KYC (Know Your Customer) checks offline, in the background.
The company also has Mint-like analytics, where users can track their spending habits and set limits and goals for themselves. The company also plans to monetize their usersโ payment data by providing business intelligence to merchants. Neatโs product also comes with a bank card, a concession to the Hong Kong market where QR codes have not been well received.
Wecash
Wecash uses data analytics to generate credit scores and offer customized loans services.
โWe are focusing on the long tail market. Our customers are usually young, like students, or blue collar workers, or farmers,โ says Mr. Shou. โIt is really hard to get loans from banks without a mortgage. From us, they get a micro loan up to 500 USD.โ
By connecting to the userโs accounts on social media and e-commerce sites, such as Weibo and Taobao, Wecash can analyze the userโs social network and activity, and use information like the userโs university degree to generate a credit score. For users that are not active on social media, the startup analyzes their phone contacts and text messages instead.
Amareos
Amareos analyzes data from social media and news articles to provide market sentiments, such as โdisgustโ and โjoy.โ Currently, Amareos is only available in English, though the startup wants to localize it in Mandarin and Japanese, and is working with Baidu to access mainland Chinaโs market. The startup also has plans to expand to the U.S, London, and Paris.
Gatecoin
Gatecoin is a trading platform Bitcoin, Ether, and DAO tokens for individuals and institutional investors around the world. The startup also offers cross-border money transfer solutions for banks and payment service providers.
Funding Societies
Funding Societies is an online P2P platform for SMEs and investors in Southeast Asia.
Eko
Ekoโs products enable customers in India to conduct payments on their mobile phones without installing software or an app. The company also provides customer payment services, merchant transactions, bill payment, and cash collection services.
Microcred
Founded in 2005, Microcred offers loans to Micro and SMEs. Itโs currently operating in Africa and China.
Jade Payments
Jade Payments is a payments provider and program management company for events payment systems, prepaid card programs, and payment platforms.
