In January 2016 Hong Kong was selected for the sixth time in a row as the world’s “freest economy” by America’s Heritage Foundation and the Wall Street Journal. The photo book Hong Kong’s Bet on Greed describes this neo-liberal “field trial” as a proxy for the PRC’s future interests in Asia. In six densely composed sections of images—from Heart of Gold to Dystopian Confusion—Volker Heinze recounts “the Chinese gamble on greed”, which features rapid growth and highlights the gap separating rich and poor: between towering skyscrapers and the golden clasp of a woman’s handbag lies a world that, far from being driven by megalomania, seems instead to be just and equitable. Heinze shows all these contrasts in his images.