Digital payment systems developed by Hong Kong and Thailand will be ready for use in the two jurisdictions from early next month, eliminating the hassle for travellers wanting to exchange currencies.

Starting from December 4, Hongkongers will be able to use the Faster Payment System (FPS) to make purchases in Thailand, while Thais travelling to Hong Kong will be able to use their local equivalent, PromptPay, in Hong Kong at merchants that accept QR code payments, under an agreement between the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) and the Bank of Thailand.

Hong Kong tourists can use their mobile phones for FPS payments that will be based on the foreign exchange rate at that given moment.

“In the coming Christmas and New Year holiday [Hong Kong residents] can use FPS wallets to scan and pay at over 8 million Thailand merchants without the hassle of exchanging Hong Kong dollars to Thai baht beforehand,” HKMA CEO Eddie Yue Wai-man said in his keynote address at the FinTech Week on Thursday.

The flagship event, backed by InvestHK, is set to attract more than 30,000 visitors, government officials, regulators and heads of major banks.

The HKMA, the city's de facto central bank, has been working with the Bank of Thailand to linking their digital payment systems. The two sides are also collaborating on the “mBridge” Central Bank Digital Currency project along with the central banks of China and the United Arab Emirates on the use of CBDCs in settling international payments.

The cross-border payment landscape will undergo significant improvement at the wholesale and retail levels over the next few years, Yue said.

“Payments will become much easier and faster and more central banks will establish bilateral connections between their instant payment systems.”

Christopher Hui Ching-yu, the Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, echoed the sentiment in his opening address, saying that fintech must be applied to the entire financial ecosystem to facilitate easier payments for outbound and inbound visitors.

This year's edition of FinTech Week is the biggest to date, with double the amount of floor space compared with the previous edition to accommodate 540 exhibitors. More than 300 speakers are expected to take part in the conference at the Hong Kong Convention Exhibition Centre.

Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu said he was impressed by the array of exhibitors and that it was heartening to see the turnout, noting “Hong Kong is made for fintech companies, entrepreneurs and investors”.“We are one of the world’s leading financial centres, and China's major financial [offshore] centre. No other economy can claim our unique advantage under the ‘one country, two systems' principle,” Lee said in his speech.

Lee said the government was committed to promoting closer integration of fintech and green finance to fast track the economy’s green transformation, in line with the city's aim to become a green finance and fintech hub.

Separately, Julia Leung, the CEO of Securities and Futures Commission, said in a separate fireside chat that the regulator will issue two guidelines on Thursday, regarding risk management of asset tokenisation, regulatory expectations and additional protection requirements for publicly offered funds.