The Hong Kong Monetary Authority, Shanghai Data Bureau, and National Technology Innovation Center for Blockchain have signed a memorandum of understanding to deepen Shanghai-Hong Kong cooperation in digitized cargo trade and finance, according to a Monday press release.

Under the memorandum, the parties will conduct joint research on digital technologies and promote their application in cargo trade and finance.

They will explore developing a cross-border platform to facilitate financial collaboration and the use of electronic bills of lading under Project Ensemble.

They will also study linking Hong Kong's Commercial Data Interchange and CargoX to support trade finance through cargo and trade data, to strengthen cross-border data connectivity between the mainland and international markets through Hong Kong.