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The Risks of Mobile Payment and Regulatory Responses: A Hong Kong Perspective

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 June 2020

Robin Hui HUANG ,
Cynthia Sze Wai CHEUNG  and
Christine Meng Lu WANG
Robin Hui HUANG
Affiliation:
Chinese University of Hong Kong
Cynthia Sze Wai CHEUNG
Affiliation:
Chinese University of Hong Kong
Christine Meng Lu WANG
Affiliation:
Chinese University of Hong Kong
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Abstract

Mobile payment generally refers to transactions made through the applications of a portable electronic gadget without the transfer of cash. As one of the most disruptive technologies for finance, mobile payment has been rapidly transforming the traditional financial industry. While it brings important benefits, there are also various risks, in terms of liquidity, security, and data privacy, that call for adequate regulatory responses. As a global financial centre, Hong Kong has gradually established a regulatory framework for mobile payment, addressing the relevant risks with rules on payment and privacy. However, there is still room for further improvement, in terms of measures to deal with cybersecurity issues and strengthen the protection of personal data. The Hong Kong experiences suggest that, to regulate a new and fast-growing industry such as mobile payment, the regulatory regime needs to be improved continuously to alleviate the risk concerns, so as to enhance the protection of financial consumers and society at large.

Keywords

mobile paymentFinTechfinancial regulationcybersecuritydata privacyHong Kong
Type
Legal Risk Society in East Asia
Information
Asian Journal of Law and Society , Volume 7 , Issue 2 , June 2020 , pp. 325 - 343
Copyright
© Cambridge University Press and KoGuan Law School, Shanghai Jiao Tong University 2020

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Footnotes

•

This research received support from a Direct Research Grant at the Chinese University of Hong Kong and also from the Hong Kong Research Grants Council’s General Research Fund project ‘The Regulation of Fintech in China’.

*

Professor of Law, Faculty of Law, Chinese University of Hong Kong. Correspondence to Hui Huang, Faculty of Law, Room 521, Lee Shau Kee Building, Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, New Territories, Hong Kong. E-mail address: robinhuang@cuhk.edu.hk.

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