Major global financial hubs Hong Kong and London have agreed to work closely with China’s Belt and Road Initiative, according to a City of London executive.
The two cities will provide financing, insurance, and legal expertise to the “enormous and ambitious” project, Sherry Madera, City of London Corporation (CLC) special adviser for Asia, told Chinese state media Xinhua.
Madera was in Hong Kong, where she witnessed the inauguration of CLC’s partnership with Hong Kong’s Infrastructure Financing Facilitation Office (IFFO). IFFO is an agency under the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) which facilitates infrastructure investment and financing for the Belt and Road Initiative.
According to Madera, IFFO now has 80 member entities, and it aims to become a knowledge-sharing platform for discussions on how to make infrastructure financing more efficient. She also noted the similarity between Hong Kong and London’s legal frameworks, making coordination easier.
“The City of London has a real strategic partner role in the IFFO, as defined by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) – it is important for us to walk the walk,” Madera said.
“This is a really good example of where London and Hong Kong are not competitors – the pie on this is so big, and by being able to work together it is going to grow,” she added.
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