China announced details of a long-awaited program to allow cross-border purchases of wealth management products in a move aimed at further integrating Hong Kong economically with neighboring mainland cities at the same time Beijing is tightening political and social control.

The so-called Wealth Management Connect will allow investors in Hong Kong, Macao and nine neighboring mainland cities — a region dubbed the Greater Bay area — to buy products in each other’s markets, in a further easing of China’s capital controls. The exact date of the program’s implementation is yet to be known.

While the move is part of Beijing’s strategic plan to build an economic powerhouse in southern China and drive the region’s economic integration, critics say the central government is dangling the financial lure to appease public sentiment as the controversial national security law is to be passed this week.

Others fear that the stagnant Chinese economy means investors should think twice before making any purchases under the new pilot program.

Economist Andy Kwan, director of ACE Centre for Business and Economic Research, urged investors to stay rational in purchasing any financial products, especially when Hongkongers are not very familiar with the financial system on the mainland. He cited the Yuanyou Bao, a crude oil futures product that went bust in recent weeks as oil prices plunged, as an example, saying that extra caution should be exercised when it comes to buying financial instruments at a distance.

Eddie Yue, chief executive of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, said the arrangement is a “landmark” development in the relaxation in mainland’s capital controls, and important for Hong Kong in becoming an offshore RMB hub.

Currently, residents of Hong Kong and the mainland can purchase equities and bonds from each other’s markets. The new initiative will offer a wider selection of wealth management products.

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