Editor's note: Matteo Giovannini is a finance professional at ICBC in Beijing and a member of the China Task Force at the Italian Ministry of Economic Development. The article reflects the author's views, and not necessarily those of CGTN.  

Last week a poll conducted by Z/Yen group and the China Development Institute (CDI) listed the major global financial centers. What is interesting to note is the return of the top spot to New York, and the rising power of Asian financial centers. Seven of the top 10 places in the list are now taken by Asia Pacific countries.  

A new separate index was also published for the first time, measuring top locations for Fintech firms and Chinese cities occupied five of the top seven places. Beijing and Shanghai came out tops, with New York, London, Singapore, San Francisco, and Chicago making the rest of the top 10 for Fintech. 

Beijing as a Fintech center is not something new or unexpected but the result of a strategic plan of the Chinese government. The Chinese capital has huge ambitions in Fintech as it hopes to attract more international firms and create innovation clusters. Last year the Beijing Financial Work Bureau and the Beijing Municipal Science and Technology Committee introduced the Beijing Promotion of Financial Technology Development Plan (2018-2022), which is part of the much larger "Beijing Urban Master Plan" (2016-2035).

Fintech is no longer just a buzzword but a real industry that applies new technologies to finance. It includes artificial intelligence, big data, mobile, internet of things, cloud computing and blockchain. They are expected to change financial services and related jobs from banking to trading, from asset management to insurance. 

I have been living in Beijing for over five years and since then I have experienced in my daily life the progress of innovation and change. The role of mobile phone in the transition to Fintech has been crucial. The expansive presence of mobile phone almost in every person's pocket from big cities to small villages; the population who passed from no banking services at all to a full set of services through mobile phone; and the introduction of integrated Apps such as WeChat that allows consumers to do almost everything through their own mobile phone without having to move physically to another place — these are the main factors of this Fintech revolution.  

China today is the undisputed B2C Fintech leader and is entering an almost cashless society. I perceive the enormous gap between China and my country whenever I have chance to visit it. In China, I almost never carry with me cash or a wallet while in my country I need to have my pockets filled with heavy coins, banknotes or bank cards. This kind of innovation is what makes people's life easier, more enjoyable and more futuristic.

Five years ago, I had to go out physically to get food, and not have it delivered to my door through Meituan-Dianping (a local food delivery service app).  In the same way, a taxi would not have waited at a specified time and place for me without Didi (a ridesharing app). I also couldn't transfer money to a friend instantaneously without WeChat wallet or Alipay.

As I reflect on my life in China, I can certainly say life has improved during the last five years as a result of authorities' strategic and pragmatic approach to technology and innovative ideas from the local entrepreneurial community. Tech hubs such as Zhongguangcun, highly integrated with the nearby universities and research centers, no longer need to look up to Silicon Valley.

One of my favorite old movies is Blade Runner, a futuristic story set in Los Angeles. The remake that was released last year set the events in an Asian city full of Chinese characters that could easily be the Beijing or Shanghai of the future. If even Hollywood directors represent a future society with Chinese features, that could mean China has seen the future and is on track to make it become reality.  

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