Hong Kong fintech startup WeLab has applied for a virtual banking license from the Hong Kong Monetary Authority. The firm’s founder and chief executive Simon Loong Pui-chi said the company has been working closely with the HKMA over the consultation of the virtual banking regulation over the past few months and the firm would like to be among the first to file a formal application for a virtual banking license. HKMA is expected to issue guidelines for virtual banking regulation based on a consultation it had launched earlier. The first batch of licenses are expected to be issued by the end of the year. WeLab was launched in 2013 and in 5 years, the company has grown to 600 staff and 30 million customers in Hong Kong and mainland China. The company is said to have a valuation in excess of US$1 billion.
