The Hong Kong Fintech Wealth Summit has successfully concluded, jointly organized by New Fire Asset Management and ChainUp Investment

On November 1st, the Fintech Wealth Summit, co-hosted by New Fire Asset Management and ChainUp Investment, successfully concluded at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Hong Kong.

This Fintech Wealth Summit focused on exploring new narratives in digital finance, asset allocation strategies during the interest rate cut cycle, the integration of RWA (Real World Assets) with the real economy, and how institutional information shapes the future of the crypto industry. Notable attendees included Mr. Liang Hanqing, Global President of Financial Services and Technology at the Hong Kong Investment Promotion Agency; Mr. Ma Huihong, Founding Partner of SIRUI Group & Global Board Member of CAIA; Mr. Liu Dehui, Director of Emperor Wealth Management; Mr. Tan Junyong, Co-Founder of Wan Fang Family Office and CEO of Wan Wei Digital Family Office; Mr. Dominic Maffei, Head of Digital Assets and Fintech at Standard Chartered Hong Kong; Mr. Wu Chao, Chairman of Gao Ying Securities & Gao Ying Technology; Mr. Liu Zhu, Director of FTSE Russell Index Business; and Mr. Wang Dian, Head of International Sales and Customer Service at Bosera, among other authoritative leaders in traditional finance.

At the beginning of the conference, Mr. Liang Hanqing delivered the opening speech, sharing the new trends and technologies he has observed at the forefront of the market.

Mr. Liang Hanqing, Global President of Financial Services and Technology at the Hong Kong Investment Promotion Agency

In his speech, Mr. Liang highlighted three major frontier trends in the development of the Web3 industry: First, the virtual asset management business, which many traditional institutions and "old money" are optimistic about. Hong Kong is at the forefront globally in terms of policy support and product design in this field. Recently, many foreign traditional financial institutions have expressed a strong desire to collaborate with Asian institutions, particularly in investing in Bitcoin and Ethereum spot ETF products. They hope to package these compliant ETF products through traditional financial institutions to sell to high-net-worth clients in Europe.

Secondly, Mr. Liang believes that the tokenization of the real economy is the second major potential direction for the development of the Web3 industry. Institutions like Fidelity, HSBC, and JP Morgan are rapidly entering this field, which is estimated to generate $400 billion in business opportunities. The third potential direction he shared is digital currency payments and stablecoins.

Sailor Zhong, Founder and CEO of ChainUp, delivered a speech on behalf of the conference organizers, sharing the exciting journey of ChainUp from its early days to becoming an industry leader, and expressing optimism about the development prospects of Hong Kong's Web3 industry.

Mr. Sailor Zhong, Founder and CEO of ChainUp

Sailor stated that ChainUp entered the virtual asset management field in 2021, providing compliant asset management services for high-net-worth clients and successfully bridging the gap between traditional finance and virtual assets. He believes that Hong Kong has unique advantages in this field, including rich experience, open policies, ample talent, and a superior geographical location, which presents tremendous development potential. Sailor also shared his views on the current virtual asset market cycle, noting that the market has shifted from being retail-driven to being institution-led. Institutional investors are increasingly focused on compliance, making compliant asset management a crucial direction for future development. Bitcoin has performed exceptionally well in the last two bull market cycles, thanks to the continuous inflow of institutional funds.

The first roundtable discussion of the conference, titled "From Policy Compliance to Technological Innovation: Exploring New Narratives in Digital Finance," examined the latest trends in the digital finance sector and the development of compliance processes in Hong Kong's crypto industry. Mr. Albert Yip, Chairman of Syndicate Capital Group, served as the roundtable moderator, with guests including Mr. Dominic Maffei, Head of Digital Assets and Fintech at Standard Chartered Hong Kong; Mr. Tan Junyong, Co-Founder of Wan Fang Family Office and CEO of Wan Wei Digital Family Office; Mr. Steve Zeng, Managing Director of Futu Group; and Mr. Ignious Yong, Senior Advisor at Bigo Holdings (8220.HK).

Mr. Dominic Maffei stated during the roundtable that the issuance of Bitcoin and Ethereum spot ETFs is a significant advancement in the history of the crypto industry. Previously, the approval of ETFs was repeatedly denied due to the operational risks associated with crypto assets. However, to position crypto assets as epic investment assets, it is essential to reduce these operational risks. Institutional-grade custodial wallets can provide a higher level of security for clients' crypto assets, enabling better use of crypto assets in daily life.

Mr. Tan Junyong noted that Bitcoin and Ethereum spot ETF products provide a particularly good entry point into Web3 for traditional family offices and institutional investors, especially those who have not previously engaged with crypto assets. Crypto assets can help them diversify their investment targets and better manage their investment assets. Finally, Mr. Tan emphasized that assisting clients in passing on crypto assets to the next generation is the company's mission, and families must address inheritance challenges in a timely manner while cultivating the next generation's sense of belief and confidence in succession.

Mr. Steve Zeng mentioned that shortly after the approval of Bitcoin and Ethereum spot ETFs, Futu announced that it would provide related ETF trading products for investors, becoming the first brokerage in Hong Kong to offer zero-commission cryptocurrency trading, providing safe and licensed services for investors. Additionally, Steve highlighted that the application of asset tokenization is an important direction for the integration of crypto assets and the real world, with significant market potential and scale in the future.

Mr. Ignious Yong stated that the approval of Bitcoin and Ethereum spot ETFs will bring a "super cycle" boom to the crypto industry over the next five to ten years for three main reasons: 1. The entry of traditional institutional investors like Microstrategy; 2. The increasing acceptance of crypto asset investment among the younger generation, who view investing in cryptocurrencies as a common investment behavior similar to investing in the stock market; 3. The combination of the real economy and asset tokenization driving the large-scale application of crypto assets and blockchain, as seen with TON and Telegram, where TON's innovations have the potential to convert Telegram's 900 million global users directly into crypto asset users.

In the afternoon session, Mr. Guo Junxiu, CEO and Founder of Elven, delivered a speech on "Optimizing the Allocation and Reconciliation Process of Crypto Assets through Elven Financial Software," showcasing how Elven helps crypto asset managers achieve data integration and refined financial analysis through automated generation of position sheets, detailed profit and loss statements, and optimized reconciliation processes, using case studies from the asset management industry. He also introduced how Elven assists OTC, payment, exchange, and project entities in meeting licensing compliance, auditing, and financial automation needs. Elven's typical clients include over 800 crypto enterprises such as Amber, Hashkey, Coinhako, Legend Trading, Alchemy Pay, DTCPay, Nansen, and Audit Alliance.

Mr. Guo Junxiu, CEO and Founder of Elven

Subsequently, Ms. Emma Zhu, Partner at New Fire Asset Management, delivered a speech titled "New Fire Asset Management's New Journey in 2024," introducing the past development history and future business plans of New Fire Asset Management. New Fire Asset Management currently holds licenses issued by the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission ("Hong Kong SFC") for Type 1 (Securities Trading), Type 4 (Advising on Securities), and Type 9 (Asset Management), making it the first licensed institution in Hong Kong to provide comprehensive discretionary account management services for virtual assets, with approval to manage investment portfolios that are 100% invested in virtual assets.

Ms. Emma Zhu, Partner at New Fire Asset Management

The second roundtable discussion of the conference focused on "In the New Round of Interest Rate Cuts, How Should Investors Allocate Various Assets?" Mr. Romeo Wang, Partner at Uweb, served as the roundtable moderator, with guests including Mr. Wu Chao, Chairman of Gao Ying Securities & Gao Ying Technology; Mr. Lan Jianzhong, CEO of Avenir CRYPTO; Ms. Song Lei, Executive Director of Securities Product Research at New Jia Wealth; Mr. Terry Lau, Director of Emperor Wealth Management; and Mr. Windson Chan, CEO of Doo Group.

Ms. Song Lei stated during the roundtable that asset allocation is primarily based on client expectations, risk tolerance, and liquidity needs. Interest rate cuts are beneficial for stock valuations, and investors should pay attention to sectors that have underperformed in recent years, such as consumer stocks, high-dividend stocks, and small-cap stocks. Interest rate cuts are also positive for bonds and gold. From an asset allocation perspective, it is essential to look for assets with long-term growth logic while setting aside macro factors. Some funds from overseas hedge funds and primary market semi-liquid strategies are suitable for clients' core allocations, achieving certain returns and profit-taking goals.

Mr. Lan Jianzhong noted that with the Federal Reserve's interest rate cuts, global liquidity has entered a new easing cycle, which means the attractiveness of risk assets is rising. In this environment, Bitcoin, as a unique asset class, is expected to perform well in a context of abundant global liquidity, and thus should be given a higher weight in investment portfolios. At the same time, we need to closely monitor the Federal Reserve's decisions and market reactions to adjust investment strategies in a timely manner and respond flexibly to potential changes.

Mr. Terry Lau mentioned that with the approval of ETFs, crypto assets are becoming increasingly legitimate, and the impact curve of crypto assets from interest rate cuts will increasingly resemble that of traditional financial assets. For instance, Bitcoin's movements are becoming more correlated with the fluctuations of the Nasdaq, and their correlation is expected to converge further, leading to a closer alignment in asset allocation.

Mr. Windson Chan stated that throughout human history, the most inflation-resistant asset has been "bricks" (real estate). He believes that a significant proportion of people's assets are still invested in non-financial sectors. In an environment of interest rate cuts, the cost of holding real estate will decrease, and residents will be more willing to leverage to buy homes, which is a tremendous boon for the real estate and real economy sectors.

Mr. Wu Chao remarked that with the arrival of interest rate cuts, the US dollar will continue to flow out, and the US stock market is in a long-term bull market. Although the current interest rate cuts may lead to a temporary adjustment, there will still be room for upward movement after the adjustment. Mr. Wu believes that commodities priced in US dollars will inevitably strengthen, and interest rate cuts will lead to a revaluation of many products, increasing demand for commodities, which will drive up commodity prices. Bitcoin serves as an excellent collector of over-issued US dollars, so its price will further rise as the dollar continues to decline.

Subsequently, Ms. Joyce Zhou, Founder and COO of QIN AWAKENING, delivered a keynote speech on "The Infinite Possibilities of IP & RWA," sharing the company's IP project—"Qin Tide Awakening Overseas Web 3.0 Distribution Plan." She deeply analyzed the innovative model of IP + RWA (Real World Assets) adopted by the "Qin Tide Awakening" project, aiming to enable more ordinary consumers to participate conveniently and with lower barriers under a global perspective. The ticket sales, redemption, and authorization of Qin Tide Awakening all incorporate blockchain modules, ensuring that every transaction is recorded on-chain for authenticity, transparency, and security. By leveraging the inherent properties of blockchain technology, the project ensures safety and compliance. Additionally, Joyce showcased the innovations and expansions in the business model of "Qin Tide Awakening." From offline physical stores to NFTs, blockchain games, Depin hardware, and peripheral derivatives, "Qin Tide Awakening" is continuously exploring and practicing, aiming to build a comprehensive and multidimensional IP ecosystem.

Ms. Joyce Zhou, Founder and COO of QIN AWAKENING

Mr. Kris Li, CEO of ChainUp Investment, also delivered a keynote speech, sharing the investment strategies and achievements of ChainUp Investment in the current market cycle.

Mr. Kris Li, CEO of ChainUp Investment

The third roundtable discussion of the conference focused on "How Do Tokenized Financial Assets and Spot ETFs Affect Investors' Sentiment Towards Bitcoin?" Ms. Emma Zhu, Partner at New Fire Asset Management, served as the roundtable moderator, inviting guests including Mr. Ma Huihong, Founding Partner of SIRUI Group & Global Board Member of CAIA; Dr. Pan Lemin, Executive Vice Chairman of the Asian Family Office Association; Mr. Liu Zhu, Director of FTSE Russell Index Business; Mr. Wang Dian, Head of International Sales and Customer Service at Bosera; and Mr. Terence Pu, Head of Custodian Services (RO) at HashKey Exchange.

The final segment of the conference featured a roundtable discussion on "Building Bridges: How Institutional Confidence Shapes the Future of Cryptocurrency Applications," with Mr. Lu Dongquan, Vice President of Progression Asset Management Ltd., serving as the moderator. Guests included Mr. Zhang Guo'ao, Partner at Deloitte's Strategic Client Center; Dr. Yu Jianing, Founder of Uweb; Ms. Shirley Ma, Deputy COO of Fosun Wealth Holdings; and Mr. Ivan Chan, Senior Director at BitGo.

The conference guests conducted in-depth analyses and discussions on the current status and prospects of Hong Kong's virtual asset spot ETF products, exploring new narratives in digital finance and asset allocation strategies during the interest rate cut cycle. As an international financial center, Hong Kong has been committed to promoting the development of the virtual asset industry and ecosystem since the release of the declaration on the development of virtual assets in Hong Kong in October 2022, laying a solid foundation for Hong Kong to become the crypto hub of Asia-Pacific.