5 in 5 minutes - Nov 04th

1. Invest Hong Kong survey: 1926 startups in Hong Kong

InvestHK released the results of its 2016 startup survey, which saw 1,926 start-ups engaged in various tech sectors and operating at different co-working spaces, incubator or accelerator locations across Hong Kong, representing a 24% increase compared to 1,558 startups in 2015.

According to the results, companies were engaged in various sectors:
Information, computer and technology: 401 startups in 2016 vs 273 in 2015
E-commerce, supply chain logistics technology: 249 startups in 2016 vs 142 in 2015
Professional or consultancy services: 180 startups in 2016 vs 137 in 2015
Design: 158 startups in 2016 vs 124 in 2015
FinTech: 138 startups in 2016 vs 86 in 2015

Click here to see the press release

2. Singapore, Hong Kong among world's top 5 FinTech Hub

According to the report Connecting Global FinTech: Hub Review 2016 recently issued by Deloitte, the global top five FinTech hubs in 2016 are: London, Singapore, New York, Silicon Valley, and Hong Kong.

3. TEDxWanChai 2016 gathers innovators in Hong Kong

12 speakers and over 1,200 people gathered at the city's largest TEDx event on Oct 29 to discuss ‘crossroads’ issues in fields spanning food security, wildlife conservation, neuroscience, and rehabilitation.

During the event, we chatted with Diana David and Henri Arslanian to know more about their opinions on the innovation process in Hong Kong and the local startup system.

During TEDxWanChai, Diana gave a speech on how to run free and find one’s own definition of joy. Diana wants people in Hong Kong to choose their own path, think about what they want in life and run free with it.

As one of the members of the Advisory Board at NEST Hong Kong, Diana says she wants entrepreneurs in the city to tackle the real problems. “I really want entrepreneurs here to leverage the technology and the way we work these days, to create new opportunities to solve a real problem in the world,” Diana says. Diana thinks Hong Kong has a great energy that feeds the startup scene and coupled with the city’s proximity to Shenzhen for manufacturing and Hong Kong’s rule of law etc., she believes Hong Kong will do great on building a sustainable startup scene.

Henri shared his view on how FinTech will transform the next generation of bankers during TEDxWanChai. We spoke with him after his speech to know more about his view on Hong Kong’s FinTech sector. As an adjunct associate professor at University of Hong Kong, who teaches Asia’s first FinTech university course, he believes it is of vital importance to arm the next generation of talents with FinTech knowledge. "I believe it is fundamentally unacceptable that in 2016, we are not teaching FinTech to finance students," Henri says.

“FinTech will have a very big impact on the financial services industry, we are currently going through one of the most important transformations in banking history. It will not only change how financial services are being delivered but it will also impact the people who work in the financial industry. Some estimates are that up to 30% of banking jobs will disappear,” Henri explains. Facing a new era in the banking industry, Henri thinks it is important to train the next generation of talents so they can join the workforce armed with the right skills.

Henri claims that the bankers of tomorrow will be very different from the bankers today. “We will still need the strategists and economists, there's still at the core of banking, but the delivery method of financial services will be substantially changed. Some of the most important roles in banking of tomorrow may be designers, programmers, and creative tech people. Any job that doesn't involve creativity in the banking world may disappear,” Henri continues. He believes that Hong Kong has a lot of great advantages in developing into a FinTech hub, as the city has 74 of the world's top 100 banks, it would be a great hub for FinTech startups in this region to tackle this industry. And the support from government has also helped to make Hong Kong a global FinTech hub.

We also interviewed Shelly Govila, Co-organiser and Head of Marketing at TEDxWanChai, to know more about the making of TEDxWanChai, the excitement, and the challenges. Click here to check it out!

4. Jubilee launches a US$30M fund targeting early stage startups

Singapore's VC Jubilee Capital Management announced it has launched Jubilee Tech Fund (JTF) with an initial kitty of US$30 million. The fund will focus on providing post-seed and Series A funding to early stage startups.

5. Singapore's Paktor raises US$32.5M

Paktor has raised US$32.5 million four months after its US$10 million funding round. Led by K2Global, Indonesian conglomerate PT Media Nusantara Citra Tbk, the funding will be used to expand Paktor's product portfolio.