(Yicai) Oct. 29 -- Hong Kong will start trials to connect its Fast Payment System with the Chinese mainland’s cross-border payments system by the middle of next year, according to the chief executive of the special administrative region’s monetary authority.

The FPS will be linked with the mainland’s Internet Banking Payment System, enabling instant interbank transfers and small payments from e-wallets on a 24/7 basis using the phone number or or email address of the recipient, Eddie Yue announced yesterday.

The Hong Kong government is coordinating the technical aspects of the trial and discussing details with the People’s Bank of China, including exchange rate calculation, transaction limits, and applicable regions, Yue added.

The Hong Kong Monetary Authority is also advancing Project Ensemble, which is designed to facilitate interbank settlement using experimental tokenized money based on blockchain technologies, Yue noted, adding that the initiative includes cross-border tokenization trials in collaboration with the central banks of Thailand and Brazil.

Moreover, Yue revealed that the HKMA is partnering with Cyberport on a new generative artificial intelligence sandbox to harness AI’s potential to foster innovation and technological advances in the financial domain. GenA.I. enables banks to pilot innovative cases in a controlled environment, offering technical support and targeted regulatory feedback, which is vital for encouraging new technologies.

The HKMA is closely collaborating with the Chinese mainland authorities to expedite cross-border trials with credit platforms to enable small- and medium-sized enterprises to engage in cross-border operations by fully leveraging a comprehensive credit data system, thereby broadening their financing channels, according to Yue.

Editor: Futura Costaglione