Geopolitics and technology – including artificial intelligence (AI) and cryptocurrency – are two themes that set the latest report apart from those in the past, said Violet Ho, Kroll’s head of Greater China investigations, diligence and compliance.
“By and large, we’re seeing generally somewhat pessimistic views from the survey respondents,” Ho said. “The overall sentiment is that we are living in a very volatile environment right now.”
The main concern behind the pessimistic sentiment is cybercrime, Ho said. Hong Kong is a fast-paced financial hub, which makes it a frequent transit point for global fraud, she added.
“That is almost a by-product of being a financial centre, but it also puts the pressure on financial institutions and banks in Hong Kong to be more stringent in terms of their [know your customer] procedures, anti-money-laundering protection mechanisms and procedures,” she said.
On April 1, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) pledged to fight fraud and scams using the latest technologies at the APAC Fighting Financial Crime Conference 2025.
