Greater Bay Area

As a bridgehead of the Belt and Road Initiative, the Greater Bay Area (GBA) has access to China’s huge domestic market and serves as an important link to the ASEAN countries, fulfilling a unique role in the nation’s “dual circulation” strategy. 

GBA is an important part of the 14th Five-Year Plan and the national economic development strategy for China. Linking Hong Kong, Macau, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Zhuhai, Foshan, Zhongshan, Dongguan, Huizhou, Jiangmen and Zhaoqing, the area will turn into an integrated economic and business hub.

Striving to become an “International science and technology innovation center” by 2025, the region is going to provide the quality of a leading class metropolis and demonstrates China’s commitment to reform and opening up. A strong foundation for an international first-class bay area and leading class city cluster is evident.

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Synergize GBA Program

Our “Six Connects in the GBA” structure

In line with the national vision for the development of the GBA, we are dedicated to bringing our global network and rich experience in the Chinese market, integrating our talent pool and network in the Chinese mainland, Hong Kong and Macau. We have set up an EY Greater Bay Area Center of Excellence with the structure of “Six Connects in the GBA” to cultivate a flexible and connected GBA Business Development Task Force, to help our clients seize the opportunities in the GBA with our international perspective and local market expertise. 

The “Six Connects” are the six areas of interoperability based on the development potential of the GBA and supported by our suite of end to end professional services. In addition, our professionals in 11 cities* maintain knowledge and insights of latest government policies and plans, and systematically analyze the relevant regulations and rules for enterprises, so as to be the first to understand the latest development and measures of each GBA market for our clients.

*The 11 cities include four core cities (Hong Kong, Macau, Guangzhou and Shenzhen) and seven key node cities (Zhuhai, Foshan, Huizhou, Dongguan, Zhongshan, Jiangmen and Zhaoqing).

The interconnection of the financial markets of the Chinese mainland, Hong Kong and Macau continues to deepen and open up to facilitate cross-border investments. The EY team will leverage its professional financial and risk management strengths to help meet the financing needs of enterprises in the GBA, mitigate cross-border financial risks through regulatory coordination and cooperation, manage and evaluate risks of innovative cross-border financial offerings and build diverse financial markets.

Technological advancement and digital transformation are the foundations that support various industry developments in the Greater Bay Area. It is becoming a necessity for organizations, not only technology companies, to transform and leverage on the tremendous value of big data to keep up with the developments in the GBA. The EY team will provide professional services in advising clients on technology transformations, cross-border information flow and regulatory compliance, to achieve information interoperability while ensuring data privacy and protection.

The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated changes in the healthcare industry. Companies in the healthcare industry in the GBA cover a wide range of aspects, including vaccine development, bio-pharmaceutical and biotechnology research and development, telemedicine and innovative healthcare solutions. Many companies are in the early stage of development while longer term investment is required. With our deep expertise and extensive experience in life sciences and healthcare sectors, the EY GBA team can provide professional services in these potential markets.

Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macau continue to advance in infrastructure interconnection, deepening the connectivity of transportation, ports, harbors and other infrastructure facilities. This provides a solid foundation for the flow of people, logistics and capital among these three locations. Also, the development of smart ports and the construction of the northern metropolitan area will bring business opportunities for more engineering companies, as well as investment opportunities for enterprises. The EY team will bring together professionals and resources in the GBA to help companies seize the opportunities in the ecosystem.

Talent is the pulse of an organization and GBA offers a diverse and unique talent proposition for organizations across different spectrum. EY teams believe that we will bring the breadth and depth in partnering with organization to develop the right talent strategy and build the key people pillars. Also, we are keen to walk with entrepreneurs in their different stages of development.

The GBA is positioned to be a green development demonstration area. In the Greater China Region, we established the ESG Committee to lead and promote sustainable development, offering professional services to the industry, including ESG management improvement, strategic planning, carbon project development, and report assurance. We also support our clients in achieving green development and carbon neutrality, and contributing to China’s carbon neutrality target by providing solutions including green finance, green technology and ESG.

Download the EY GBA booklet 

EY Greater Bay Area Center of Excellence — Six Connects in the GBA

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