Cyberport is a

business park A business park or office park is a designated area of land in which many office buildings are grouped together. These types of developments are often located in suburban areas where land and building costs are more affordable, and are typically ...

in Southern District,

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...

consisting of four office buildings, a hotel, and a retail entertainment complex. It describes itself as a digital technology community with over 1,800 (800 on-site and 1,000 off-site) digital and technology companies, including six unicorn start-ups, namely

GOGOX GOGOX, previously GoGoVan, is an on-demand ride sharing service based in Asia, which focuses on transportation of freight and goods in urban areas. Steven Lam Hoi-yuen, Nick Tang Kuen-wai and Reeve Kwan Chun-man co-founded the service in 2013. The ...

, KLOOK, WeLab, TNG,

Animoca Brands Animoca Brands (Animoca Brands Corporation Ltd) is a Hong Kong-based game software company and venture capital company founded in 2014 by Yat Siu. It was listed on the Australian Securities Exchange from 23 January 2015 to 9 March 2020. Nota ...

and ZA International, have emerged as

Unicorn (finance) In business, a unicorn is a privately held startup company valued at over US$1 billion. The term was first published in 2013, coined by venture capitalist Aileen Lee, choosing the mythical animal to represent the statistical rarity of such succ ...

, spanning categories of fintech, smart living, digital entertainment and esports. Cyberport is managed by Hong Kong Cyberport Management Company Limited, which is wholly owned by the

Hong Kong SAR Government The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, commonly known as the Hong Kong Government or HKSAR Government, refers to the executive authorities of Hong Kong SAR. It was formed on 1 July 1997 in accordance with the Sino-Br ...

. In operation since 2004, Cyberport focuses on

fintech Fintech, a portmanteau of "financial technology", refers to firms using new technology to compete with traditional financial methods in the delivery of financial services. Artificial intelligence, blockchain, cloud computing, and big data are r ...

, smart living, digital entertainment and

esports Esports, short for electronic sports, is a form of competition using video games. Esports often takes the form of organized, multiplayer video game competitions, particularly between professional players, individually or as teams. Although orga ...

, AI and

big data Though used sometimes loosely partly because of a lack of formal definition, the interpretation that seems to best describe Big data is the one associated with large body of information that we could not comprehend when used only in smaller am ...

blockchain A blockchain is a type of distributed ledger technology (DLT) that consists of growing lists of records, called ''blocks'', that are securely linked together using cryptography. Each block contains a cryptographic hash of the previous block, a ...

, and

cybersecurity Computer security, cybersecurity (cyber security), or information technology security (IT security) is the protection of computer systems and networks from attack by malicious actors that may result in unauthorized information disclosure, the ...

. Cyberport is currently home to the largest Fintech community in Hong Kong with around 400 Fintech companies. Bowtie, a member of the Cyberport community, was authorised by the Hong Kong Insurance Authority to become Hong Kong's first virtual insurer under the Fast Track system in November 2018. Zhong An and WeLab, who are also members of Cyberport, were two of the initial eight financial institutions and firms to be granted a virtual bank license. To promote the development of esports in Hong Kong, Cyberport launched the opening of Hong Kong's largest professional-grade esports venue on 16 July 2019 located in the Cyberport Arcade. It also launched the Esports Industry Facilitation Scheme and the Esports Internship Scheme. The former offers cash grants to support industry activities, while the latter provides a cash subsidy for internships in the esports industry. As of February 2022, Cyberport Incubation Programme had incubated and funded over 1,000 technology start-ups companies since its inception in 2005. The Cyberport Macro Fund was announced in 2016 to support local start-ups after seed stage but generally before or around Series A stage of funding. The fund, which received a further injection of HK$200 million by Cyberport and its scope extended to cover Series A and later stage investments, has, as of July 2022, invested in 22 start-ups totalling about HK$168 million, driving a co-investment ratio of 1:8. On 25 March, the Hong Kong SAR Government announced that Simon Chan Sai-ming would succeed Dr George Lam as chairman of the board of directors of the Hong Kong Cyberport Management Company Limited from April 1, 2022, to March 31, 2024. Cyberport currently comprises four phases, providing a total of 119,000 square metres of office space. As of May 2021, the occupancy rate of Cyberport's office and co-working space has consistently maintained occupancy rates at 90% and 95% respectively. The number of applications for the "Cyberport Incubation Programme" has substantially increased from less than 100 per year before 2011 to over 600 per year in recent years. The Cyberport project has courted controversy since its inception because of the government's bypassing the open-tender process in awarding the project to real estate developer Richard Li Tzar-Kai, and also because of its reliance on "ancillary residential" revenue. In recent years, Cyberport has developed as the digital technology flagship and key incubator for entrepreneurship in Hong Kong.

Project background

In March 1999, the Hong Kong government announced its intention to develop a "Cyberport", to help local businesses capitalise on the rapid growth of the Internet. The government called it a development where information technology and multimedia would be nurtured so that future demands of these industries could be met. According to the press release by the Commerce and Economic Development Bureau, only one-third of the site would be residential, the sale of which would help finance the Cyberport development. The Cyberport is billed as home to an incubator for ICT startups, providing office space, financial aid, training, micro fund and network access to the investment community. The Hong Kong government inked a partnership deal with the

Pacific Century Group Pacific Century Group (PCG), chaired by Richard Li, is an Asia-based private investment group founded in 1993 with interests in technology, media and telecommunications, financial services, infrastructure, property and other investments. It oper ...

(PCG) to develop a site with open sea view at

Telegraph Bay Telegraph Bay or Kong Sin Wan (), formerly known as Tai Hau Wan (), is a bay in the west shore near Pok Fu Lam, between Sandy Bay and Waterfall Bay on the Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong. It is where the Cyberport is located. History In the early ...

Pok Fu Lam Pok Fu Lam or Pokfulam is a residential area on Hong Kong Island, at the western end of the Southern District. It is a valley between Victoria Peak and Mount Kellett, around Telegraph Bay. Pok Fu Lam can claim several ''firsts'' in the histo ...

Hong Kong Island Hong Kong Island is an Islands and peninsulas of Hong Kong, island in the southern part of Hong Kong. Known colloquially and on road signs simply as Hong Kong, the island has a population of 1,289,500 and its population density is 16,390/km ...

, at a total cost of HK$13 billion. It was announced as part of the 1999 budget by then-Financial Secretary

Donald Tsang Sir Donald Tsang Yam-kuen (; born 7 October 1944) is a former Hong Kong civil servant who served as the second Chief Executive of Hong Kong from 2005 to 2012. Tsang joined the colonial civil service as an Executive Officer in 1967, occupyi ...

. It was also hoped that this development would help the HKSAR's economy rebound after the

1997 Asian financial crisis The Asian financial crisis was a period of financial crisis that gripped much of East Asia and Southeast Asia beginning in July 1997 and raised fears of a worldwide economic meltdown due to financial contagion. However, the recovery in 1998–1 ...

, and bring a "strategic cluster of information technology and services companies situated in a world-class setting". The "strategic telecommunication node" was due to be formed due to its close proximity to the proposed "Teleport" in

Chung Hom Kok Chung Hom Kok ( or ) is an area in the southern Hong Kong Island in Hong Kong. It is a popular site for barbecue and swimming with a beach and lifeguard services available from April to October. West of Stanley, Chung Hom Kok is referred to as ...

. Touted benefits include "a range of shared facilities for tenants, including a multimedia-based network, telecommunication links, media laboratory, cyber library and other information technology and services support facilities. There will also be educational, entertainment and recreational facilities related to information technology and services for local visitors and tourists". As part of the deal, PCG would construct a office complex with a shopping mall and a 173-room hotel that would be put out to management. Title to these properties would be transferred to the government at zero cost, while PCG received land for of residential housing in exchange, and would reap 64.5 percent of the profits from their sale. The construction of the Cyberport portion consisting of four office buildings, The Arcade and Le Meridien Cyberport Hotel, was completed in phases between 2002 and 2004. The residential developments consist of approximately 2,800 units or houses was completed in phases between 2004 and 2008.

Controversy

Awarding the project without formal open tender

The government's decision in granting the project to Pacific Century Group (PCG) controlled by

Richard Li Richard Li Tzar-kai is a Hong Kong businessman and philanthropist. The founder and chairman of the private investment group Pacific Century Group (PCG), Li started his career in the 1990s with the founding of STAR TV, a pan-Asian television ...

, son of Hong Kong's wealthiest man

Li Ka-shing Sir Ka-shing Li (; born 13 June 1928) is a Hong Kong billionaire business magnate, investor, and philanthropist. As of June 2019, Li is the 31st richest person in the world, with an estimated net wealth of US$33.4 billion. He is the senior ad ...

, to develop the site generated much controversy. Awarding the project to PCG without a formal open tender attracted criticism for lack of transparency; other interested developers complained of being sidelined. Three private and wholly owned companies, namely, Hong Kong Cyberport Development Holdings Limited, Hong Kong Cyberport Management Company Limited and Hong Kong Cyberport (Ancillary Development) Limited (collectively referred to as the "Cyberport companies") were set up under the Financial Secretary Incorporated (FSI) to oversee implementation of the project. The project was criticised as unnecessary government intervention in the real estate sector.

Residential project disguised as tech hub

According to critics, Cyberport was a residential project in disguise, as it arguably failed in its mission to become a high-technology hub for the city. ''Eurasia Review'' suggested that the government land was injected into the project below value. The overall rationale of the project has been questioned by its critics, as details have emerged about the planning and budgeting for the project that indicate that 75% of the area developed is residential, and that office space for the technology companies was only be about 17% of the total. Also the "shared facilities" made up only part of a small block which includes houses and apartments.

Low occupancy of rental office towers

The project had the reputation of a "ghost town", as the government-owned portion suffered low occupancy. Fifteen companies signed letters of intent with the developer, including Hewlett-Packard, IBM, Microsoft and Yahoo, but only three moved in at the initial opening, due to a technology slump. The government rejected accusations of favouritism, arguing that PCG's presence as an

anchor tenant In retail, an "anchor tenant", sometimes called an "anchor store", "draw tenant", or "key tenant", is a considerably larger tenant in a shopping mall, often a department store or retail chain. They are typically located at the ends of malls. Wit ...

would be a marketing plus to prestigious international technology companies. In addition, tendering was bypassed ostensibly to shorten the sensitive time frame to bring forward the economic benefits of the project. PCG later hived off the residential property interests into a shell company separate from the telecoms operation so that the shell company would receive the residential housing sales revenues; it was also accorded right of first refusal to redevelop sites of 60 existing telephone exchanges of

PCCW PCCW Limited (formerly known as Pacific Century CyberWorks Limited) is a Hong Kong-based information and communications technology (ICT) company. The company is the majority owner of telecommunications company HKT Limited, and also holds a maj ...

, the telecoms operator. In October 2004, David Webb cited lack of transparency in the government's business dealings and demanded audited financial accounts and directors' reports for three companies related to the project to be released under the non-statutory Code on Access to Information.

Housing

Bel-Air is a luxury residential development in Cyberport. The development is split into six phases; phase 1 and 2 are referred to as Residence Bel-Air and Phase 3 is referred to as Bel-Air on the Peak. Phase 1 and 2 each have a clubhouse and seven blocks that are about 48 floors tall. Floor 40 and above are flats that have the area of two flats combined into one, creating over . All of which feature sky gardens with ocean views. Enumeration of "Block 4" and all fourth floors of each block has been avoided for superstitious reasons. However, the management company neglected to omit 4 when naming the construction phases. Each floor of "Bel-Air on the Peak" has two or three apartments, two larger units, 'A' and 'C' and a smaller two-bedroom unit 'B'. The clubhouse of "Bel-Air on the Peak" is significantly newer with more artistic features. They maintain an indoor pool, gym, restaurant, snooker room and children's game room. Bel-Air has 2 clubhouses: the Bay Wing and Peak Wing. They feature a

spa A spa is a location where mineral-rich spring water (and sometimes seawater) is used to give medicinal baths. Spa towns or spa resorts (including hot springs resorts) typically offer various health treatments, which are also known as balneoth ...

, indoor and outdoor swimming pools, game's room, gym, children's playroom, restaurant and personal cinema. Each floor of the "Residence Bel-Air" has two flats with three bedrooms, a kitchen and a

balcony A balcony (from it, balcone, "scaffold") is a platform projecting from the wall of a building, supported by columns or console brackets, and enclosed with a balustrade, usually above the ground floor. Types The traditional Maltese balcony is ...

. Additionally, there are single-family homes near "Residence Bel-Air".

Gallery

File:Hong Kong Cyberport Office Buildings.jpg, Entrance File:Aerial view of Cyberport.jpg, Aerial view File:Podium at Cyberport.jpg, Cyberport 2 File:Cyberport 3.jpg, Cyberport 3 File:The Podium.jpg, The Podium and Arcade File:Cyberport Network Operations Centre.jpg, Network Operations Centre of Cyberport