On 28 November, Yang Mei, CEO of Greater Bay Area International Art Bonded Industry Center, shared her thoughts on industry development and youths at the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Cooperation and Development Forum of the Asia Youth Leaders Forum 2021.

The full speech is as below.

Dear dignitaries,

I'm Yang Mei, founder of the Greater Bay Area International Art Bonded Industry Center.

The centre was born and grows in Nansha District. I'm from Hong Kong, but I no longer want to leave Nansha since I came here in 2016. Many of the keywords of our business-starting process is closely related to the word “youth”.

Firstly, what we're engaged in is the import and export of bonded artworks. This is an emerging industry. The establishment of free trade zones in the country enable this industry to grow. So, without free trade zones, import and export of bonded artworks cannot exist. This is a new business form.

Secondly, our company is very young. I started the centre in 2019. Within less than a year since our company was founded, we had already organized the first exhibition of bonded artworks in the entire Guangdong Pilot Free Trade Zone. At the beginning of 2020, we did an exhibition of an original painting by Picasso, the largest and most valuable (about RMB 200 million) ever exhibited in China, which the CCTV also covered. The original painting by the famous Spanish artist Picasso traveled from the UK to Hong Kong, and then to Nansha Comprehensive Bonded Zone. Now it is on a touring exhibition all over the country.

Thirdly, all members of our company are young people. Every time we go to an exhibition, we discover that all our team members – more than 40 people – were born in the 1990s. Everyone is hardworking. I think this fits the theme of our forum today, the power of youths. The development of this industry, our business, and personnel all depends on the power of youths.

The application of blockchain technology to the bonded art industry is actually what we are working on. The Nansha District Bureau of Financial Affairs has introduced us to the Antchain team of Alibaba. Now we are discussing how to use blockchain to resolve the pain points of the artwork industry: one is about authentication (whether it is real); and the other is about valuation (how much it is worth). Thanks to blockchain, we can record all information of the artwork since its birth, including who created it, when it was created, where it traveled after each transaction, who bought it, and at which auction house it was last sold. This can be a good application of blockchain in the artwork industry and will open up a new business track. For young entrepreneurs to enter a traditional industry, we are most concerned about whether there is a new track that can offer a promising future for development. Actually, Nansha has its own public blockchain, which was the earliest regional public chain. So, we can make a big difference in this.

What are the strengths of Nansha? People talk a lot about advantages in location and talent. For the future, however, the strength is the shift from a geographic centre to a functional centre. These days, I've been thinking about how we transform and upgrade the industry. For Hong Kong, the artwork market is a traditional industry. The establishment of free trade zones in the mainland is actually helping Hong Kong's artwork industry toupgrade. So, what can Nansha bring to Hong Kong and Macao? Firstly, Nansha can help them expand their market. The most dynamic artwork market in the future will definitely be the mainland. Secondly, Nansha can help them reduce cost. The costs of warehousing and labour force in Hong Kong are very high. However, the bonded zone in Nansha Free Trade Zone is within the borders of China but outside its customs jurisdiction, which has a clear advantage on the policy level and in costs. This is why free trade zones are attracting artwork resources from Hong Kong and Macao, as well as foreign countries. During the past two years, this trend was already very obvious. When it comes to Macao, the region does not have many traditional industries. But the developing artwork market is actually bringing industry resources into Macao and enhancing its industry vitality. Subsequently, its industries will gradually become diversified. In fact, we have introduced a lot of exhibitions to Macao, and Macao's local artists also hope to bring their exhibitions into Nansha.

Nansha’s advantage will become more prominent in the future. Therefore, it will be more vigourous, more creative, and more prosperous. Thank you!