The University of Macau (UM) Faculty of Business Administration (FBA) and the Macau Institute of Financial Services recently held a training course in cross-border wealth management. The course attracted over 70 participants, including financial services professionals and UM students. During the course, FBA faculty members and senior industry practitioners shared their professional knowledge and experience with the participants. The event was supported by the China Construction Bank’s headquarters in Beijing and the Bank of China Macau Branch.  

The concept of the Greater Bay Area Wealth Management Connect, first mentioned in the Outline of the Development Plan for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, is a policy breakthrough to facilitate cross-border investing by individuals in the Greater Bay Area. According to the chairman of the management committee of the Macau Institute of Financial Services, the course aimed to provide training for financial professionals to prepare them for services related to cross-border RMB investments. He adds that Macao's financial services practitioners should actively improve their professional skills, so as to grasp the new opportunities in the financial sector.

According Jean Chen, dean of the FBA, the banking and finance industry requires less land resources compared to other industries and can help to support the development of many industries, which will create significant added value. As the traditional banking and finance industry in Macao is already of considerable scale, it is appropriate to develop a modern financial sector to promote the diversification of Macao’s economy, a direction that is recognised and supported by the central and Macao SAR governments. The Greater Bay Area Wealth Management Connect allows investors from mainland China, Hong Kong, and Macao to make cross-border investments in certain investment and wealth management products sold by banks in the Greater Bay Area through closed-loop fund management. Therefore, the financial sector in Macao must be well prepared in terms of the training of professionals, financial infrastructure, supporting facilities, technology, and management.

The training course was organised by Lei Chun Kwok, associate head of the Department of Finance and Business Economics of the FBA. Guest speakers in the course included Tam Hon Keung and Fu Xiaoqing, associate professors in the FBA; Huang Yuguang, chief advisor of wealth management at China Construction Bank Guangdong Branch; Li Lu, co-managing director of China Construction Bank International Asset Management Limited; and Xu Zhiyu, managing director of the Bank of China Macau Branch.