November 7, 2023
HONG KONG – The government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region will work with the city’s financial regulators to enhance the competitiveness of the stock market and sustainable development, Secretary for Financial Services Christopher Hui Ching-yu told lawmakers in the Legislative Council Panel on Financial Affairs on Monday.
Hui said these measures include reviewing the bid-ask spread in stock market trading and the real-time market data service charging arrangement.
“The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong has earlier put forward specific suggestions on GEM (growth enterprise market) reform to enhance competitiveness and better serve small and medium-sized enterprises. Depending on the opinions collected during the public consultation, Hong Kong Exchange and Clearing aims to implement the new arrangements in the first quarter of next year,” Hui noted.
Secretary for Financial Services Christopher Hui Ching-yu said the government will release the detail of the new Capital Investment Entrant Scheme within this year, whereas investors with investments of HK$300 million ($38.35 million) in stocks, mutual funds, bonds, and other assets (excluding properties) are eligible to apply for Hong Kong permanent residency
The financial services chief also said the SEHK has consulted the market on launching a treasury share mechanism and issued guidance on exempting issuers from executing automatic share repurchase plans during the restriction period. This is to provide issuers with greater flexibility and transparency when they manage capital structure through share repurchases and reselling treasury shares.
Hui said the government will release the detail of the new Capital Investment Entrant Scheme within this year, whereas investors with investments of HK$300 million ($38.35 million) in stocks, mutual funds, bonds, and other assets (excluding properties) are eligible to apply for Hong Kong permanent residency.
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“The new plan can attract more new funds to settle in Hong Kong; drive the demand for high-end asset and wealth management businesses, thereby creating high-quality job opportunities for the financial and related professional service industries; enrich the talent pool; and support the vigorous development of the asset and wealth management industry,” Hui said.
More than 90 chairmen or chief executive officers of the world’s top financial institutions will gather in Hong Kong from Monday to Wednesday during the second Global Financial Leaders’ Investment Summit hosted by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority. Last year, 40 senior executives from major financial institutions attended the summit.
The second Global Financial Leaders’ Investment Summit kicked off on Monday, with participants joining the dinner reception and party gallery viewing in the Hong Kong Palace Museum in the evening.
“This year, mainland regulatory officials will attend the summit in person, and senior executives of overseas financial institutions having the opportunity to engage with them in private communication at dinners and different sessions at the summit,” HKMA Chief Executive Eddie Yue Wai-man said in the media report released on Monday.
Yue said he believes that the summit will enable senior management of foreign financial institutions to enhance their understanding of Hong Kong and the Chinese mainland, which will help strengthen their long-term confidence in expanding their businesses in Hong Kong.
The HKMA chief noted that, due to the low correlation between financial assets on the Chinese mainland and those in the United States and Europe, and the influx of passive capital into the Chinese mainland financial market, overseas asset management companies are increasing their capital allocations to the mainland’s financial assets.
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However, as the senior management of asset management companies could not visit the mainland during the COVID-19 pandemic, overseas asset managers are temporarily underweighting mainland assets, and will decide whether to increase investment again after the situation becomes clearer, Yue said.