ZA Bank is advancing the adoption of Interbank Account Data Sharing (IADS) as part of its strategy to support the Hong Kong Monetary Authority’s (HKMA) Fintech 2030 roadmap. CEO Calvin Ng outlined the bank’s vision for open banking at Hong Kong FinTech Week 2025, highlighting how IADS is playing a central role in transforming digital banking in Hong Kong.
Speaking at a forum organised by the HKMA, Ng explained that ZA Bank is leveraging IADS to drive product innovation and improve customer experience. The bank’s IADS-enabled services, such as instant loan approvals, allow customers to share their account data from other banks for automatic credit assessments, removing the need for physical documentation.
Looking ahead, ZA Bank plans to expand the use of IADS with features like one-click loan repayment setups, flexible repayment scheduling, and real-time financial insights based on cross-bank data sharing. Ng emphasised that collaboration between banks and fintech firms will be essential to furthering the adoption of open banking in the region.
The bank also expressed its strong support for the HKMA’s Fintech 2030 vision, noting that its initiatives align with key areas such as data and artificial intelligence (AI), cybersecurity, and tokenisation, all of which are crucial for the future of Hong Kong’s digital banking landscape.
Speaking at a forum organised by the HKMA, Ng emphasized that IADS is central to ZA Bank’s efforts to improve customer convenience and accelerate financial innovation. The bank has introduced a range of IADS-enabled services designed to streamline banking processes and enhance customer experience. Among these, instant loan approvals stand out as a transformative feature, allowing customers to share account data from other banks to facilitate automatic credit assessments. This eliminates the need for extensive paperwork and manual verification, significantly reducing approval times.
Ng also detailed the bank’s plans to expand IADS functionality in the near future. Upcoming features include one-click loan repayment setups, flexible repayment scheduling, and real-time financial insights derived from cross-bank data. By leveraging the full potential of IADS, ZA Bank aims to deliver seamless, efficient, and highly personalized banking experiences to its customers.
The CEO highlighted that the success of open banking relies on collaboration between banks and fintech firms. By sharing data securely and adopting interoperable systems, institutions can unlock new opportunities for product innovation while ensuring regulatory compliance and customer protection. ZA Bank has positioned itself at the forefront of this ecosystem, combining technology, data analytics, and customer-centric solutions to lead the charge in Hong Kong’s digital finance sector.
