Hong Kong Legislative Council member Duncan Chiu: Looking forward to the Web3 industry actively responding to the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission's consultation and providing suggestions; it is premature to conclude who the winner is between Hong Kong and Singapore

Author: MAP Protocol

According to ChainCatcher, on November 5th during Hong Kong FinTech Week, the offline VIP cocktail party "Next Legend: MAP HK onto Web3," co-hosted by the cross-chain technology track paradigm MAP Protocol, AMA Studio, and zkNFTex, attracted numerous attendees from Hong Kong's political, business, academic circles, and the Web3 industry, including members of the Hong Kong Legislative Council, representatives of the National People's Congress of the People's Republic of China, professors from Hong Kong Polytechnic University, and the president of the Hong Kong International Financial Strategists Association, who delivered important speeches.

The co-organizers of this event also included: Binance Custody, Bybit, Crypto.com Capital, AICFC Hong Kong International Financial Strategists Association, Re:verse, and others.

Guests attending the event included Mr. Duncan Chiu, member of the Hong Kong Legislative Council (Technology and Innovation), Professor JP Hong Weimin, representative of the National People's Congress of the People's Republic of China, Mr. Adam Bull, Head of Sales for Binance Institution in the Asia-Pacific region, Dr. Zhou Haoyun, president of AICFC Hong Kong International Financial Strategists Association, Mr. Chen Ping, founder of Ausvic Capital, Mr. Kong Jianping, founder of Haowei Technology, Professor Cao Jiannong, dean of the Graduate School of Hong Kong Polytechnic University & globally renowned computer science professor, Mr. Jason, head of the newly established Web3 fund under CDH Investments, Mr. Jerome, co-founder of EVG, and Mr. Joe, senior executive at Hashkey.

Mr. Duncan Chiu, member of the Hong Kong Legislative Council (Technology and Innovation), stated:

"In the past six months, many in the tech innovation and Web3 sectors have been talking about Singapore, but in the last two months, some friends who have moved to Singapore have been asking when Hong Kong can reopen, as they are very interested in returning. With Hong Kong lifting entry restrictions, there will be more development opportunities ahead, and the Hong Kong government is supporting the development of the high-tech industry from various aspects, including Web3 policies, funding support, office space, and talent. It is well known that the Hong Kong government has issued a 'Policy Declaration on the Development of Virtual Assets in Hong Kong,' and what is most surprising for the Web3 industry is that the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) will conduct public consultations on retail investors buying and selling virtual assets.

Although it is estimated that not all types of virtual asset trading will be opened up at once, this is already a significant breakthrough, exceeding industry expectations. The Hong Kong Monetary Authority will conduct public consultations in the coming months, with the expectation that policies can be implemented within the year. After the global ICO boom of previous years, the Web3 industry has also begun to move towards compliance in recent years."

Duncan Chiu stated that as a member of the Hong Kong Legislative Council for the Technology and Innovation sector, he will organize multiple opinion meetings involving the Web3 industry and welcomes all Web3 industry elites present at the MAP Protocol event to provide feedback, ensuring that Hong Kong's Web3 policies meet the needs of the industry.

Mr. Cao Jiannong, a globally renowned computer scholar, director of the Artificial Intelligence and Internet of Things Research Institute at Hong Kong Polytechnic University, and chair professor of Distributed and Mobile Computing, stated:

"Thank you for the invitation from MAP Protocol, which provides an opportunity for close communication with many Web3 entrepreneurs and investment institutions. PolyU (Hong Kong Polytechnic University) has always been at the forefront of research in blockchain and Web3. Recently, it was just awarded Coindesk's Global Blockchain Best University No. 1. The PolyU Blockchain Technology Research Center covers research on underlying architecture, interoperability protocols, high-performance search, smart contract security, privacy computing, and various applications including data sharing, food safety, smart buildings, and environmental protection. I strongly support the foresight of the Hong Kong government and hope to see the implementation of this plan soon. We also look forward to more opportunities to leverage our research advantages and work closely with the industry and government.

The recent 'Policy Declaration on the Development of Virtual Assets in Hong Kong' issued by the Hong Kong government will greatly promote the development of the Web3 industry in Hong Kong, leveraging Hong Kong's advantages in finance and Fintech, making Hong Kong a pioneer in the digital economy, especially in virtual asset services. For the academic community, I believe this is also a great encouragement and a good opportunity, as it can encourage universities and research institutions to delve deeper into blockchain and Web3, while also providing opportunities to implement research results."

Michelle Law, Chief Operating Officer of MAP Protocol, stated:

"Hong Kong, as one of the freest economies in the world, has been greatly encouraged by the release of the 'Declaration' for the global Web3 industry. It is well known that many global Web3 projects originated in Hong Kong, and MAP also views Hong Kong as a very important base.

Currently, in the field of Web3 infrastructure, the Layer 1 industry has established a standard Ethereum paradigm, while in the cross-chain infrastructure field, due to significant challenges in cryptography and engineering implementation, no paradigm has emerged to date. MAP Protocol has solved all the problems in the cross-chain infrastructure track and will become the paradigm for cross-chain infrastructure.

For a long time, the cross-chain infrastructure track either has collusion risks due to privileged roles or cannot cover all chains. The cross-chain verification mechanism based on MPC and Oracle is easy to develop and can cover all chains, but it has collusion risks and involves privileged roles, which does not comply with Satoshi's consensus; while other Light Client-based solutions, although lacking privileged roles, cannot solve the issues of linking to Ethereum, BNB Smart Chain, and other EVM chains. MAP Protocol uses Light Client and ZK for cross-chain verification, featuring no privileged roles, independent self-verification, and coverage of all chains, fully complying with Satoshi's consensus, and after four years of R&D breakthroughs, it will officially launch by the end of 2022.

The Hong Kong government has presented a great gift for the popularization of the Web3 industry and virtual assets. As a cross-chain infrastructure, MAP is the super connector for global Layer 1s and Layer 2s, and will actively contribute to the development of Hong Kong's Web3 industry. In the future, the MAP Foundation will donate to various universities and research institutions in Hong Kong for scientific research in cross-chain technology, blockchain security, and the Web3 industry, collaborating with the global Web3 industry to promote R&D innovation and industrial implementation in Hong Kong, and to promote the education and popularization of Web3 and distributed ledger technology in Hong Kong campuses and communities, supporting the younger generation of Hong Kong to join the Web3 and virtual asset industry."

Felix, the founder of zkNFTex, also stated, "I believe in Hong Kong's potential as a new hub for Web3, and we will actively participate in the ecological construction of blockchain in Hong Kong, believing that under the leadership of the Hong Kong government, Web3 will thrive in Hong Kong. As an NFT trading market in the ZK ecosystem, zkNFTex is dedicated to helping thousands of investors/creators transition from ETH L1 to L2, providing users with a better NFT trading/creation experience."

Finally, Mr. Duncan Chiu, member of the Hong Kong Legislative Council, stated that in the continuously evolving digital asset (including cryptocurrency, ETF, NFT, etc.) industry, the attitudes of various countries and regions towards the industry are also changing, and who the winner will be remains uncertain.

Photos from the event: