Hong Kong urged to develop GBA blockchain and e-invoicing standard

This will enable faster cross-border fund transfers.

The success of the Greater Bay Area (GBA) initiative is highly dependent on the efficiency with which companies can conduct payments across borders, according to a survey by accounting firm CPA Australia.

The GBA is a connectivity scheme by the Chinese government to link Hong Kong, Macau and nine cities in the Mainland including Guangdong and Shenzhen into an integrated economic center.

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“Technology will be central to making it easier to make legitimate transfer payments across borders and detect and disrupt illegitimate movement of money. We suggest that governments consider working with business and financial institutions to develop a Greater Bay Area blockchain standard and an e-invoicing standard,” Paul Ho, CPA Australia Divisional President of Greater China said in a statement.

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The standards will help ensure that the potential of blockchain technology is maximised in the GBA so that interoperability is guaranteed even if separate blockchains are set up across the region.

It will also provide an opportunity for businesses to reduce costs by slashing processes, improving access through more reliable financial information and smart contracts. The tech also has the potential to improve compliance.

The GBA project has already attracted the attention of tech tiant Tencent who is already working with the government to create an electronic pass system that will ease travel within the GBA through linking documents to the WeChat app.