Hong Kong Welcomes 1st Digital Identity Solutions Partnership

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TransUnion (NYSE:TRU) today signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Hong Kong Applied Science and Technology Research Institute (ASTRI) to jointly develop digital identity solutions that will help financial institutions streamline their Know-Your-Customer (KYC) compliance processes and enhance operational efficiency. As part of the partnership, a “TU-ASTRI FinTech Innovation Center,” housed in the ASTRI building has launched today and is intended to be a neutral ground for the financial technology (FinTech) industry, a place where both parties and various stakeholders can collaborate to innovate.

Current KYC processes involve complicated and non-standardized paper-based identity checking processes, which have increased costs for financial institutions.

To help solve for this issue, TransUnion and ASTRI will share their resources, insights, and R&D capabilities, beginning with a proof-of-concept exercise. They will jointly develop a digital identity management platform that will help financial institutions improve the efficiency and accuracy of their KYC processes, reduce costs and accelerate customer onboarding, while minimizing risks and consumer privacy concerns.

“To cope with constantly changing regulatory challenges and to boost financial industry competitiveness, there is a need in Hong Kong for insight-driven technological solutions, with early adopters likely to reap the biggest benefits,” said Mr. Lawrence Tsong, President, TransUnion Asia Pacific at the signing ceremony held at Hong Kong Science Park. “As a leading information solutions provider, TransUnion maintains in-depth dialogues with banks in Hong Kong on the feasibility and applicability of innovative FinTech solutions, such as identity authentication. As a result of this partnership and our new platform, banks may be able to accelerate growth, power new models and identify expansion opportunities in real time”

“Partnering with TransUnion allows ASTRI to bring its R&D expertise in FinTech into action once again. We have one of the best R&D teams in this region to work on this platform that will address the evolving identity management and financial crimes prevention needs of the industry. We are happy to have this opportunity where our digital solutions will help the industry to meet significant regulatory expectations while also improving overall banking experience for the customers," said Dr. Frank Tong, CEO, ASTRI.

TransUnion is a global leader in consumer credit information and data solutions that enable businesses to provide a smooth customer experience in a secure manner while protecting their business and profitability. ASTRI, the largest science and technology research facility in Hong Kong has proven expertise in developing FinTech solutions. In partnership with TransUnion, ASTRI will develop a digital platform where customers’ information will be secured and authenticated in an integrated manner – helping to eliminate repeated and erroneous data entries. The digitized platform will make it safer and easier for users – customers and banks alike – to access and authenticate the relevant information.

The MoU can be seen as part of Hong Kong’s embrace of FinTech, and a key component of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Government’s drive to establish the city as a hub for the application and standard-setting for cutting-edge digital financial solutions.

• Caption: (From left) Dr. Duncan Wong, VP, Financial Technologies of ASTRI; Dr. Frank Tong, CEO of ASTRI; Mr. Lawrence Tsong, President of Asia Pacific, TransUnion; Mr. Samuel Ho, CEO, TransUnion Hong Kong, signed a MoU on March 16, 2017, at Hong Kong Science Park to establish a digital identity solutions laboratory.