Tencent CEO calls for ID link between Hong Kong and Chinese citizens

Ma Huateng believes it will enhance trade in the region.

Bloomberg reports that China’s second richest man Ma Huateng has called on Beijing to introduce an ID system that would connect several travel documents with a mobile phone in an effort to boost regional trade between Hong Kong and the Mainland.

The Tencent CEO believed that the enhnaced technology infrastructure would enable more cross-border transactions.

“It’s still very complicated and we’d need to make it work with the customs systems but from a technology point of view we can do it,” Ma said at a press conference in Beijing before the country’s legislative council convenes in the capital to set the agenda for the financial year. “We have been talking to the chief executive in Hong Kong for quite some time about a number of these issues, including the electronic ID.” 

Ma is a staunch supporter of further integration of SARs within the Pearl River Delta Region, arguing that Hong Kong, Macau, Guangdong can aim to be like San Francisco Bay Area in the US if it facilites cross-border transport.

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Photo from Dmitry Lysenko - Own work, Public Domain