The Hong Kong Monetary Authority is launching an upgraded version of the Fintech Career Accelerator Scheme (FCAS 2.0), with a view to enhancing the fintech talent pool in Hong Kong to meet growing demands from the industry.

Under the heading of FCAS 2.0, the HKMA will collaborate with its strategic partners, the Hong Kong Applied Science and Technology Research Institute (ASTRI), the Hong Kong Cyberport Management Company and the Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation (HKSTP), in offering four fintech talent-building programmes.

One of the seven initiatives announced in September 2017 by the HKMA to help the banking sector to achieve the goal of 'smart banking' is an improvement of fintech research and talent development. FCAS 2.0 is part of that initiative and comprises the programmes below, each targeted at young talents of various stages of their career development.

• Entrepreneurship summer boot camp, done with Cyberport.
• Shenzhen Summer Internship Programme, allowing students to gain work experience in renowned fintech or techfin firms for six weeks.
• A gap year full-time placement programme, done with ASTRI, with the support from 20 banks and 10 tertiary education institutions, targeting undergraduates and postgraduates.
• A full-time graduate programme involving Cyberport and HKSTP. The HKMA and ASTRI have agreed to provide regulatory updates and technical training respectively to the graduates in this one.