GBA’s financial services industry more ‘bullish’ for future prospects: PwC

Tech advancements are paving the way to new opportunities for cross-industry servicing.

The Greater Bay Area’s financial services industry has grown more optimistic thanks to the development of new technology solutions and “pent-up” energy after the COVID years.

A report by PwC China– consisting of interviews of senior figures in the GBA– noted very exciting technological developments that could unleash a wide range of new opportunities where financial services, healthcare and technology intersect.

“Market sentiment has grown much more bullish since we last surveyed the financial services industry,” noted James Chang, managing partner of regional economic clusters, Mainland China financial services leader, PwC China. 

Chang noted a number of factors for the increased optimism. “There has been a proliferation of Government-led initiatives in the GBA over the last couple of years. This is combined with exciting new technology solutions from market players that help resolve many of the challenges implicit in the GBA. On top of this, there is a lot of pent-up energy after the COVID years,” Chang said.

PwC’s clients also and other interviewees point to recent developments, such as the HKMA’s FinTech Promotion Roadmap and measures to promote financial cooperation between Qianhai and Hong Kong. 

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There is also much discussion of the widely-expected expansion of Wealth Management Connect – with larger individual quotas and a relaxation of rules on offering sales advice.  

“When researching our previous GBA papers, some market participants expected challenges due to working across the three jurisdictions of the GBA,” says Chris Chan, financial services markets leader, GBA Services, PwC China. 

“But in the last couple of years there have been very exciting developments in the permissioned sharing of data. Combined with the accelerated pace of digital adoption during Covid, financial services players find themselves operating in a very different environment,” Chan added.

“Many of the developments we highlight in our paper are not exclusive to the GBA and could potentially flourish elsewhere in China,” Chang said. “But there is a unique combination of professional expertise, financial infrastructure and entrepreneurial wealth in the GBA.”

“There is also an intense concentration of financial and policy innovation, which is likely to transform the GBA. The excitement and anticipation in the market is reflected in the points of view captured in our new paper,” Chang added.