HKSTP and Ant Group strengthens partnership to nurture HK startups

Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation (HKSTP) has collaborated with Ant Group to support startups across the city. Both parties will offer venues, business insights and resources for startups to explore opportunities in the Greater Bay Area and even Southeast Asia.

Under the partnership, HKSTP will provide venue and logistics support, and facilitate discussions with startups in its roster of over 1,000 tech-driven ventures participating in its incubation programmes. On the other hand, Ant Group will provide business insights and resources such as platform access for proof-of-concept testing and the possibility of equity investment.

The programme will kick off with online meetings and mutual visits with Ant Group executives to discuss potential business opportunities. Future possibilities may include holding industry showcases to highlight excellence and exploring creative solutions to help HKSTP companies grow their infrastructure or products through channels such as intellectual property licensing and joint development agreements.

“HKSTP is delighted to partner a world-class leader in Ant Group as the owner of Alipay, one of the biggest digital payment platforms worldwide. The combination of our extensive startup ecosystem, knowledge and vibrant community with Ant Group’s deep financial services and technology strength, will usher a wave of new fintech opportunities and innovation for entrepreneurs in the Greater Bay Area and beyond,” said Albert Wong, CEO of HKSTP.

“This new strategic collaboration is fully in line with the goals of Ant Group which has always been aware of its responsibility to society. Along with a local university, we provided more than 100 technical job vacancies for its fresh graduates and alumni, in a bid to help nurture the city’s young talents last month,” said Jennifer Tan, executive vice president of strategy development and government affairs, Greater Bay Area of Ant Group.

Ant Group added that the collaboration will leverage its operational experiences and ecosystem in China. "Local or foreign fintech startups can set foot in the Greater Bay Area, which is in line with the GBA InnoExpress programme promoted by HKSTP. Meanwhile, riding on our overseas investments, we can also help entrepreneurs to go global, especially in the ASEAN region,” said Tan.

Recently, Singaporean fintech company Nium has expanded its footprint in Hong Kong by opening an office at Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation's (HKSTP) InnoCentre, tapping into the opportunities in the city, the Greater Bay Area and even North Asia. The expansion can help Nium grow its application programming interface (API)-based payments services in the region, connecting consumers, corporations and financial institutions to the world’s payment infrastructure through a single API for international transfers.

Meanwhile, the number of startups in Hong Kong has increased by 12% year-on-year as the city's accessibility to international and regional markets was the major reason for startups operating in the city, according to a study conducted by InvestHK.  The 2021 Startup Survey showed that the overall number of startups in the city reached a record high of 3,755, up from 3,360 (12%) in 2020 from various industries, such as fintech, eCommerce, supply chain management and logistics technology, as well as professional or consultancy services. However, there were only 2,229 startups in the city in 2017, meaning that over the years, the number of startups in the city has increased by 68%. In addition, the number of staff hired by startups rebounding from that of last year (10,688) by 29%, as the industry is hiring 13,804 employees in total. 

The startup industry's job market was hit by the pandemic in 2020. It was down from 12,478 in 2019 to 10,699 in 2020. Nonetheless, since 2017, the number of employees has increased from 6,320 in that year to 13,804 this year, equivalent to a 118% increase. 

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