Norman Chan, chief executive of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority from 2009 to 2019 and current tech entrepreneur, will head the Institute of Web 3.0 Hong Kong, established to facilitate Web3 development in the city, according to a report by Hong Kong China News Agency.
See related article: Hong Kong financial secretary eyes Web3 push despite market fluctuations
Fast facts
- China Mobile International, the global business arm of China Mobile, is one of the founding members of the institute. China Mobile’s chairman and CEO Li Feng will be one of the nonprofit’s honorary chairperson.
- The institute is in line with Hong Kong and China’s vision for the Web3 ecosystem. It aims to establish standards, facilitate collaboration in the industry, consult for the Hong Kong government, and develop the talents in the sector.
- The organization will also focus on the monetization of data, digitalization of traditional industries and the tokenization of assets, especially through non-fungible tokens.
- The nonprofit organization comprises former high-ranking government officials, members from the city’s legislative council and tech moguls from mainland China.
- China Mobile International Ltd., the global business branch of China’s telecommunication giant China Mobile, is one of the founding members of the Institute, and Li Feng, the Chairman and CEO of the company, will be one of the Institute’s honorary chairmen.
- Hong Kong will also launch a Web3Hub fund to attract foreign Web3 companies to the city, according to the report.
- Hong Kong aims to build itself into a global hub for the Web3 industry, and has so far attracted over 80 Web3 firms to set up shop in the city, including those from mainland China where cryptocurrency trading was banned in September 2021.
- Web 3.0, dubbed the next generation of internet, promises a decentralized, permissionless and open-source alternative to today’s internet, based on technologies such as blockchain, artificial intelligence and Internet of Things.
See related article: China state-owned banks turn crypto-friendly in Hong Kong: Bloomberg