Hong Kong selects 36 generative-AI projects for expanded financial sandbox
Hong Kong’s financial regulators picked 36 generative-AI projects for the first cohort of the GenAI Sandbox++, covering banks, brokers, insurers and pension funds.
Source: South China Morning Post · August 27, 2026 at 11:31 AM · AI-assisted report
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HONG KONG, 27 AUGUST 2026 —
Hong Kong’s financial regulators picked 36 generative-AI projects for the first cohort of the GenAI Sandbox++, covering banks, brokers, insurers and pension funds.
Market Impact
The projects were chosen by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, Securities and Futures Commission, Insurance Authority and Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes Authority, the regulators said in a joint statement on Thursday. The cohort includes 30 financial institutions and 27 technology partners. Participants range from Ant Bank (Hong Kong) and WeChat Pay Hong Kong to HSBC Life (International).
Trials are scheduled to start later this year on a platform operated by Cyberport’s Artificial Intelligence Supercomputing Centre. The focus is on “agentic AI”—systems that operate with higher autonomy—and will test end-to-end workflows such as customer onboarding, payments, insurance claims and customer interactions.
HKMA chief executive Eddie Yue Wai-man said the programme will bring more banks and technology firms into the sandbox. “These partnerships are unlocking the potential of agentic AI to create new opportunities,” he said. SFC chief executive Julia Leung Fung-yee said the move marks a step toward a future-ready market where greater system autonomy is paired with governance and accountability.
The Sandbox++ launched in March as an expansion of the original GenAI Sandbox created by the HKMA and Cyberport in 2024. It broadens testing to securities, capital markets, asset and wealth management, insurance, mandatory provident funds and stored-value facilities. The initiative keeps risk management, fraud prevention and customer experience as core priorities while exploring AI tools to monitor risks created by other AI systems.
Related: Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) · Eddie Yue Wai-man · Hong Kong