'Cross-border measures needed to make payments easier'
Financial services secretary Christopher Hui said cross-border arrangements are being made to make payments easier for tourists travelling between Hong Kong and the mainland. Speaking on RTHK's Overview Policy programme, Hui said the Octopus company has worked with the Bank of China's Shenzhen branch to allow Hongkongers without a mainland number or bank account to pay on the mainland.  "This is the most practical and efficient way," he said. "With the Octopus card, you can buy a digital RMB hard wallet on the mainland. So you can survive on the mainland even if you don’t have a mainland bank account or phone number." The treasury minister also said a new integrated fund platform will be launched to help overseas wealth management companies sell their products in Hong Kong. "Without the platform, these fund companies have to go to the banks one by one to see how to sell their fund products in the Hong Kong retail market," he said.  "But with the platform, they can sell their products to the local market without going through the process."