Former Hong Kong stock exchange boss Charles Li pushes for enhanced mobility in Greater Bay Area to speed up business interconnectivity

The former boss of Hong Kong stock exchange, Charles Li Xiaojia, on Wednesday said wider adoption of advanced technology such as facial recognition has the potential to enhance mobility in the Greater Bay Area (GBA), as he shared his vision of a programme that would allow easier travel for businesspeople and other groups within the megalopolis, without violating tax, emigration or labour laws.

“The interconnectivity between Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macau boils down to the exchange of people, money and thoughts,” Li said in a conference organised by Singaporean multinational bank DBS on the GBA development zone, which comprises the two special administrative regions and nine cities in the southern coastal province.

Although interconnectivity in finance still has a long way to go, Li indicated that the GBA master plan must remove real-life hindrances and obstacles that impede the mobility of people living in this vast area.

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In finance, Li said Hong Kong as well as Macau can serve as connectors between international venture capital and GBA-based companies, especially those involved in hi-tech industries.

“While there is abundant capital domestically, overseas capital can help bring new perspectives and ideas to local innovations, which could have long-term implications for the globalisation of local companies,” he said.

Li’s views reflect the growing local and international interest in the GBA, which has been described by some as “the future of Asia”.

Beijing intends to turn the GBA – with a population of more than 80 million people and which accounts for about one-tenth of China’s economic output – into a new powerhouse that would surpass the economic heft of the New York Metropolitan Area and Tokyo Bay region by 2035.

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At the same conference on Wednesday, former Hong Kong chief executive Leung Chun-ying also called for easing limitations that would improve the inflow of mainland people and vehicles to the city.

“The mainland has released bolder GBA policies compared to Hong Kong so far,” Leung said. “The policies should be two-way to fully tap opportunities in the GBA.”

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He indicated that the Hong Kong government can consider setting up non-profit schools for mainland students, whose parents work in the city. Schools specifically for Hongkongers have already been established in various mainland Chinese cities, including one Leung founded in the Nansha district of Guangzhou, capital of Guangdong.

The city’s government can also consider opening certain areas on Lantau Island to vehicles from the mainland, according to Leung, after a scheme allowing Hong Kong motorists to cross the border into mainland China in their private cars took effect on July 1.

South China Morning Post