HONG KONG - The Asian Financial Forum 2016 scheduled for Jan 18-19 in Hong Kong will focus on topics including China opportunities, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) development prospects as well as the Belt and Road Initiative, organizers said here on Thursday.

According to Helen Wong, chief executive for Greater China region of the Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Ltd, the two-day forum will feature in-depth discussions and exchanges on topical issues shaping global business and finance.

Wong, who is also chairperson of the forum's organizing committee, said that apart from the China opportunities and ASEAN prospects, topics regarding financial technologies as well as opportunities created by the Belt and Road Initiative will also be touched during the forum.

With the theme of "Asia: Shaping the New Paradigm for Growth," this year's forum will attract participants including former US Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke, Russia's Deputy Prime Minister Arkady Dvorkovich as well as a number of famed business leaders and financial experts.

Co-hosted by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government and the Hong Kong Trade Development Council, the forthcoming forum will be the ninth edition of its kind.