Finance sector lawmaker Ronick Chan on Sunday said a new cross-border electronic payment service is convenient for both Hong Kong and mainland people.

His comment came as the Payment Connect had a smooth start, with thousands of payments made on the first day of operation.

There were 2,000 northbound transactions and 7,400 southbound payments made as of noon on Sunday, according to the Monetary Authority.

The new service links up Hong Kong's Faster Payment System with the mainland's Internet Banking Payment System, allowing FPS users to transfer up to HK$10,000 a day per account to the mainland, with an annual cap set at HK$200,000.

Speaking to RTHK, Chan said the new system has proven to be a quick and easy money transfer mechanism.

He said in the past, remittances had to be handled by banks during office hours and the process took one to two days to be completed.

“Right now, it takes just a few seconds' time to complete the whole transaction. I think it really offers members of the public in both the mainland and Hong Kong a very convenient way of completing their money transfer,” he said.

Chan also said the current limit for transactions is sufficient for users, adding that people can transfer money via different bank accounts if necessary.