Certizen Technology and the Global Legal Entity Identifier Foundation (GLEIF) recently co-hosted the "Global Forum on Digital Organizational Identity" at Cyberport. The event brought together government policymakers, regulatory representatives, industry associations, research leaders, and industry pioneers. Discussions centered on digital corporate identity, trusted data, and digital public infrastructure, focusing on practical applications in cross-border trade, supply chain finance, and SME financial inclusion, aiming to accelerate the regional and international adoption and interoperability of the verifiable LEI (vLEI).

The Forum commenced with welcome addresses from Mr. Alexandre Kech, CEO of GLEIF, and Ms. Eva Chan, CEO of Certizen Technology. This was followed by keynote speeches from distinguished guests, including Ir. Tony Wong, JP, Commissioner for Digital Policy of the HKSAR Government; Mr. Donald Sum, JP, Vice Chairman of eBRAM International Online Dispute Resolution Centre; Mr. Vijayakumar Manjunatha, Secretary General of the Asia Public Key Infrastructure Consortium (APKIC); and Dr. Rocky Cheng, CEO of Cyberport.

Eva Chan, Founder and CEO of Certizen Technology (third left); Alexandre Kech, CEO of GLEIF (third right); Tong Wong, JP, Commissioner for Digital Policy of the HKSAR Government (centre); Ronald Sham, JP, Vice-Chairman of the eBRAM International Online Dispute Resolution Centre (second right); Jackson Leung, Vice-President of the Chinese Manufacturers’Association of Hong Kong (second left); Michael Lai, President of the Hong Kong General Chamber of Small and Medium Business (far right); and Ivan Mortimer Schutts, Global head of vLEI at GLEIF(far left), jointly officiated at the Launch Ceremony of the event.

Ms Eva Chan, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Qiaojin Technology, said in her remarks that she was grateful to GLEIF for choosing Hong Kong as the only stop in Asia for its global forum (the other two stops being New York, USA and Frankfurt, Germany). She also thanked the representatives from more than 13 countries and regions under the Asia Public Key Infrastructure Consortium (APKIC) for coming to Hong Kong to participate in this grand event, and acknowledged the real-time interpretation services provided by eBRAM International Online Dispute Resolution Centre, which have made the forum a truly cross-lingual, cross-cultural, and cross-jurisdictional exchange platform.

She stated that hosting this summit in Hong Kong not only affirms the city’s status as an international financial centre and innovation and technology hub, but also underscores its value as a bridge connecting the Greater Bay Area with global markets. As artificial intelligence (AI), autonomous systems, the Internet of Things, and cross-border digital services accelerate in adoption, interactions between institutions have shifted from “people-to-people” to “system-to-system” and “machine-to-machine.” Against this backdrop, machine-readable, verifiable, and traceable digital organizational identities will be the cornerstone of the future global digital economy. She specifically noted that the vLEI is an organization’s “digital passport.” It enables any document, process, or transaction to be automatically and accurately authenticated in any country. This not only enhances efficiency but also brings unprecedented security and transparency to cross-border commerce. Combined with the online dispute resolution platform provided by eBRAM International Online Dispute Resolution Centre, it further consolidates Hong Kong’s position as an international hub for dispute resolution.

Representatives from over 13 countries and regions under the Asia Public Key Infrastructure Consortium (APKIC) posing for a group photo with officiating guests.

Guests and officiating guests from various sessions posing for a group photo.

Representatives of vLEI end-user group posing for a group photo with officiating guests.

In his keynote speech, Ir. Tony Wong, JP, Commissioner for Digital Policy of the HKSAR Government, outlined the development of the "Corporate Digital Identity" (CorpID) platform. He stated that the HKSAR Government will use the platform to provide businesses with digital identity authentication and digital signing capabilities, aiming to simplify the process for enterprises, especially SMEs, to use e-government services, enhance business facilitation, and accelerate digital transformation. Mr. Wong also mentioned actively exploring the feasibility of integrating the CorpID platform with vLEI. He called on the industry to actively participate in the upcoming sandbox initiative, which will lay an important milestone for Hong Kong in building a digital identity infrastructure aligned with international standards.

Ir. Tony Wong, JP, Commissioner for Digital Policy of the HKSAR Government delivering his keynote speech at the Forum.

The morning session featured concurrent technical workshop and industry roundtable. The technical workshop focused on the evolution of the KERI ecosystem and interoperability design, discussing technical roadmaps for securing identity verification and trusted data sharing, and facilitating in-depth exchanges on integrating verifiable credentials with traditional credential systems. The industry roundtable, themed on B2B cross-border payments and invoice financing, explored the role of identity credentials in the KYB processes, data governance, and compliance within cross-border SME payment networks. The session also shared practical experiences from SME trade pilots between selected Asian countries and integration with e-invoicing platforms, providing replicable pathways for the sustainable expansion of cross-border commerce.

Guests from the morning session's industry roundtable posing for a group photo.

The three expert forums held in the afternoon were highly insightful. The session on "Digital Org ID and its role in the next phase of Trade Digitization & Supply Chain Finance" was moderated Pamela Mar, Head of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) Digital Standards Initiative(DSI).Leaders and experts from organizations including TradeGo, AEOTrade Research Institute, Standard Chartered, Verifiable.Trade Foundation, and the BIS Innovation Hub Hong Kong Centre comprehensively examined the latest global and regional developments, covering aspects from legal frameworks and standards, financing and risk control, to supply chain security and policy coordination.

Expert forum moderated by Ms. Pamela Mar (center), Head of the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) Digital Standards Initiative(DSI).

Ms. Keren Leung, Vice President of Certizen Technology (third from left); Ms. Camilla Bullock, CEO of the Emerging Payments Association Asia (EPAA) (third from right); Mr. Albert Leung, Acting CEO and CTO of eBRAM International Online Dispute Resolution Centre (first from right), and other guests posing for a photo.

The subsequent forum on "Empowering SMEs with digital control over identity and data" was moderated by Ms. Camilla Bullock, CEO of the Emerging Payments Association Asia (EPAA). Participants included Ms. Gigi Leung, Vice President of Certizen Technology; Mr. Eric Leung, Acting CEO and CTO of eBRAM International Online Dispute Resolution Centre; and guests from Dataswyft, FTS.Money, and Ant Group. The discussion focused on enabling SMEs to effectively manage their identity, data, and government-issued credentials across multiple jurisdictions and platforms, thereby enhancing operational efficiency, facilitating cross-border payments, and improving access to financing. The synergistic roles of public infrastructure, regulation, and standards were also explored.

Expert forum moderated by Professor Douglas Arner (right) from The University of Hong Kong. Guests included Mr. Benny Leung, Assistant Commissioner, Digital Policy Office (Data Platforms) (left), Ms Kyle Hung., Financial Infrastructure, Hong Kong Monetary Authority (second from right).

The closing forum, "The road ahead for DPI: trusted data and organizational identity – designing for interoperability," was moderated by Professor Douglas Arner from The University of Hong Kong. Panelists included Mr. Benny Leung, Assistant Commissioner, Digital Policy Office (Data Platforms); Ms Kyle Hung, Financial Infrastructure, Hong Kong Monetary Authority; and experts from Singapore's Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA), Thailand's Electronic Transactions Development Agency (ETDA), and Germany's G+D. The forum provided a comprehensive comparison of corporate identity schemes' capabilities in supporting finance, trade, and payments across different jurisdictions, and discussed interoperability design options from governance and operational to technical layers, outlining a feasible blueprint for an inclusive regional digital economy.

The finale of the day was the "vLEI Hackathon Finale and Awards Ceremony," hosted by Mr. Allen Shao, Solutions Architect Lead at the Asian Development Bank. Six finalist teams demonstrated their technical implementations and business application scenarios centered on trade, trade finance, and SME finance, showcasing the unique value of vLEI in providing trusted identity, transparent processes, and verifiable compliance.

AEOTrade from Beijing, supported technically by Certizen Technology, received an award at the hackathon. Their solution leverages vLEI and blockchain technology to create an integrated platform, building a trusted collaboration network that significantly enhances the security, accuracy, and efficiency of global trade processes. Utilizing "Trust Trade Chain + vLEI," the solution ensures the authenticity, uniqueness, and compliance of every electronic bill of lading (eBL). Throughout the entire process of eBL issuance, transfer, verification, and presentation, it guarantees the authenticity and trustworthiness of all participating parties' digital identities, thereby substantially reducing the risk of maritime fraud and providing a concrete paradigm for industry-level application of "verifiable identity + verifiable data."

Ms. Eva Chan, CEO of Certizen Technology (first from right), and Mr. Alexandre Kech, CEO of GLEIF (second from right), presenting the award to representatives of AEOTrade.

As a GLEIF-approved Qualified vLEI Issuer (QVI), Certizen Technology continues to deepen its efforts in the complex and representative experimental environment of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, characterized by "one country, two systems, three legal jurisdictions, three customs territories, and three currencies." Collaborating with higher education institutions, healthcare providers, and industry partners across the three regions, Certizen is building a cross-border system for the circulation of verifiable identities and credentials. This supports cross-border trusted data flow and compliant operations in scenarios such as education, healthcare, trade finance, and e-government.

Looking ahead, Certizen Technology will continue to collaborate with GLEIF, government departments, regulatory bodies, international organizations, and ecosystem partners to promote the complementarity and integration of digital corporate identity and vLEI. The aim is to enhance the transparency of various documents and the authenticity of digital identities, establish interoperable frameworks and demonstration scenarios for the region and globally, and evolve the models validated between Hong Kong and other Greater Bay Area cities into an international consensus. This will inject sustainable trust momentum into global trade, supply chain resilience, and SME financial inclusion.