Proponents of blockchain technology say that it can reduce the cost and increase the speed of some business processes. IT industry veteran Dr Wong Kit Cheung Paul is one such proponent: He firmly believes that blockchain technology can address the complexity and cost issues of doing cross-border business, especially in the Greater Bay Area (GBA). Equally adept at both the theoretical and practical aspects of IT, Dr Wong is practising what he preaches by launching a blockchain platform.

Digital Transformation to enable cross-border business

The problem that blockchain technology can solve, according to Dr Wong, is that the cities of Greater Bay Area have, variously, one country, two systems and three currencies. This has resulted in cross-border business systems being sometimes incompatible. “Significant differences remain under the existing system,” says Dr Wong. “That means that many GBA businesses engaged in cross-border activities face challenges and added overheads. For example, some information is not sharable across the border.”

The serial entrepreneur launched his second start-up project, DigiXnode (dXn), in October 2021. dXn is an applied research project that allows blockchain application developers and users to legally access numerous blockchain frameworks both in mainland China and worldwide. This saves time, cost and effort while accelerating cross-border deployments of distributed ledger technology (DLT)-based applications. According to Dr Wong, dXn is the first technology of its kind operating in Hong Kong and Macau offering Blockchain-based Service Network (BSN) as a service to enterprises. The BSN is a cross-cloud, cross-portal, cross-framework global infrastructure network used to deploy and operate all types of blockchain applications.

“We have a team of 35 people, dXn providing quick, easy and economical one-stop access to trusted infrastructure, which enables cross-border digital trade between Belt-and-Road economies,” says Dr Wong. “It also provides the most secure and trusted marketplace for digital assets and services,” he adds.

Besides his blockchain project, Dr Wong has also formed a start-up company providing a Customer Management Solutions (CRM) system service for the Greater China market. He grew the team from a three-person band to over 350 employees. He says the business went well: he sold 25,000 copies of the CRM system in less than five years, and annual revenue ranged from HKD 150 million to 200 million in Greater China during these years. The project ended successfully when the business was sold to a subsidiary of Blackstone.

Key success factors

Dr Wong believes that the key success factors in running blockchain-based service platforms in the GBA are the regulatory endorsement, the cost ownership and effectiveness of the platform, the market dynamic, and the technology behind it.

“Regulatory endorsement is the key,” he says. Since 2019, the Chinese government has indicated that it approves of blockchain technology. This has elevated it to a national priority, and created an environment of digital trust.

The HKSAR Government issued a policy statement in October 2022 on the development of virtual assets (VA) in Hong Kong. The statement set out how Hong Kong plans to develop a vibrant VA ecosystem in the city, and outlined the government's strategy goals and strategy for creating a supportive environment for promoting the sustainable and responsible development of the VA sector in Hong Kong. This will be done in collaboration with financial regulators. Timely and essential guardrails will be put in place to mitigate current and potential dangers in line with international standards. This will allow the city to support VA advances in a sustainable way.

Regarding rules, the government has stated that as it intensifies its planning for a new licensing system for VA service providers, it is prepared to interact with international VA exchanges and encourage them to look to Hong Kong for new business prospects.

Dr Wong believes the HKSAR Government picked the right time for this, and secured the right expertise. With its strategic position, both globally and within the GBA, Hong Kong remains an important bridge connecting business in and out of China.

“When you build a platform, you expect it to continuously support regulatory changes, and you have to keep up with market-driven changes to stay competitive.” says Dr Wong.

The technology industry changes fast with each passing day. Blockchain and AI are two underlying technologies of the Web 3.0 world that businesses have been experiencing since 2015. According to Dr Wong, the Web 3.0 world will take 10 to 15 years to mature.

Dr Wong is dedicated to using technology to improve the overall efficiency of business operations. He aims to develop the BSN platform so that it becomes a recognised leading player in delivering cross-border solutions and services.

“In cross-border business and blockchain areas, you hear a lot of noise. But really not much in the market is actually booming. The market is short of a quality pioneer that can take off and do something large scale,” says Dr Wong.

“DigXNode is meant to become a platform that a general business can use to provide cross-border access of some kind,” he adds.

Walking through the ranks

Dr Wong has done well not only as a theorist and practitioner, but also as a professional manager and entrepreneur.

Before studying for his Doctor of FinTech degree at PolyU from 2019 to 2022, Dr Wong had over 30 years of experience in the IT industry. During this time, he worked in various capacities for major vendors including IBM, Wang, DEC and Corvison, from technical positions to sales and management.

After exiting from his first start-up project, Dr Wong returned to the corporate world mid-career to take up the position of Managing Director of the Greater China Region of Altos Global IT Solutions and Services, one of the top five IT companies in the world. He served for six and a half years, leading a team of over 3,500 people in mainland China and Hong Kong. The Greater China region is one of the most successful and profitable developing subsidiaries in the Altos world.

Dr Wong was also instrumental in setting up Altos’ China’s joint venture with Sequoia Cross Border Funds – the only cloud offering in China by a foreign company. He led the Altos team as it negotiated the JV start-up, built the business, and managed the first two years of operation.

The mentality is to create something that helps society and solves problems

Despite his many professional achievements, Dr Wong talks humbly. He says what drove him to pursue his doctoral degree was the aspiration to seek systematic knowledge. “Knowing the knowledge fundamentals is a good supplement to my working background,” he says.

“Today, it’s more about solutions and applications, more practice than theory, and how you can use solutions and tools to actually make life better, rather than chewing on the details of how it might be possible to make it better in theory. The mentality is to creating something that helps society and solves problems.”

When asked why he chose PolyU for his doctoral degree, Dr Wong said it was because PolyU’s DFinTech Programme is the first of its kind in Hong Kong.