Where finance and technology come together

[...] in the emerging industry that combines finance and technology, often called fintech, the center of activity is less obvious.

The lack of a clear winner has been apparent to executives like Chris Larsen, chief executive of San Francisco’s Ripple, which offers international payment processing services to banks.

Larsen fields a steady stream of calls from representatives of foreign cities hoping to lure him and his company to their shores to bolster their fintech credentials.

If the young financial technology industry has the transformative effect that some have imagined, the contest could also determine the future capitals of finance as a whole.

In the exhibition hall, Invest Hong Kong, a quasi-governmental agency, had a booth where startups could learn about the regulatory benefits and subsidies the government of Hong Kong recently began to offer fintech companies.

Chinese fintech companies like Alipay and Tencent have been processing more financial transactions than the largest Chinese banks.

The city-state’s government is offering to put money into companies that locate in Hong Kong, and its regulators have a new “supervisory sandbox” where new companies can try their products without needing to fulfill all the normal regulatory requirements.

“The big question for London is, what will happen to talent?” said Taavet Hinrikus, the Estonia native and co-founder of one of the biggest London-based fintech companies, TransferWise, which lets people send money abroad in real time over the Internet.

The day after the Brexit vote, the Irish government sent a playful message to Hinrikus and TransferWise on Twitter: Dublin sure is a nice place for a fintech company.

Berlin, which has become a hub for young technology workers, took an even more aggressive approach.

The primary British regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority, has set up Project Innovate to help startups clear regulatory hurdles.

In the United States, the government has been slow to act, but the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency has been talking about creating a type of charter, with more limited rules, for fintech companies.