SFST visits Central and Western District (with photos)
******************************************************

     The Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, Mr James Lau, visited Central and Western District this afternoon (March 16). He toured a public market and a co-working space before meeting with members of Central and Western District Council to exchange views on local issues.
 
     Mr Lau first went to Smithfield Market in Western District, where he chatted with stall tenants to learn about their business environment and listen to their views on the facilities and management of the market.  Commissioned in 1996, Smithfield Market now has 216 stalls providing daily food and necessities for nearby residents.
 
     Mr Lau then proceeded to Naked Hub, a co-working space in Sheung Wan, to better understand the operation of start-ups and small and medium enterprises (SMEs) there. He said he recognised the importance of co-working space, incubators and accelerators in the promotion of innovation and financial technologies in Hong Kong.
 
     Naked Hub is a facility designed to help start-ups, SMEs and even multi-national companies across all industries. The co-working space is known for its vibrant online community - a unique platform for tenants to develop synergy and grow their businesses.
 
     Before concluding the visit, Mr Lau met with members of Central and Western District Council to exchange views on various issues including London gold scams, money lending practices, mobile payments, the opening of bank accounts and the availability of building space for district services.
 

Ends/Friday, March 16, 2018
Issued at HKT 19:25

NNNN