Going through hoops to be fintech basketball champ
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Going through hoops to be fintech basketball champ

Sometimes work really can be all fun and games, as some Hong Kong fintech professionals are finding.

Back in my day, inter-bank socialising happened at the bar over plenty of drinks. Occasionally we would meet for a friendly game of cricket, or toss around an old rugby ball. But everything was in good fun, with little real competition.

But, no surprise to me, today’s youth can take even a friendly ball game too seriously.

Hong Kong has just become home to a new fintech basketball league, with 15 teams from companies including Alibaba, AMTD Group and Standard Chartered competing. The premise is perfect: bankers, crypto leaders and tech teams can take a break from their long hours at work to work up a sweat on the court, in a friendly, mixed-gender league.

But the league has taken off even more than its organisers expected and already there is a lengthy waiting list of teams clamouring to get in on the next season.

The competition is cut-throat, as old school bankers battle with young tech savvy professionals. Teams are eager to prove their dominance on the court and won't hesitate to pile the pressure on to their peers. Some, particularly the crypto teams, are said to be bringing in sleeper players to surprise the competition. Rumour has it that they have even hired suspiciously talented interns, who may or may not have played basketball professionally in the past.

While no one has pulled a Tonya Harding yet, if the heated comments on the league’s Facebook page are any indication, wins will not come undisputed.

Best of luck, ladies and gentlemen. May the best team win!

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