Summit Shows HK Is Open For Business: InvestHK

Invest Hong Kong chief Stephen Phillips on Wednesday said the flurry of international events taking place in Hong Kong this week amplifies the message that Hong Kong is “well and truly back open for business.”

Speaking on RTHK’s Hong Kong Today programme, the director-general of the government’s investment promotion unit said the Global Financial Leaders’ Investment Summit that started on Wednesday, coupled with ongoing Hong Kong FinTech Week and the Rugby Sevens at the weekend, sends an unequivocal message to the world.

“All of these events are global in nature but combining them will really send out this very strong message to business communities and wider communities across the world… that Hong Kong really is well and truly open for business,” Phillips said. “That’s really important, because it’s a signal that the international business community has been looking for.”

He added that the finance leaders’ summit is a “great opportunity” for participants to discuss a very complex global economic situation.

Phillips also said InvestHK is working to attract more family offices to set up shop or expand in the SAR, as this is a growing sector he believes can “add a new dimension to our status as an international finance centre.”

Family offices are investment companies that help to manage the wealth of high-net-worth individuals. Phillips says while they are a distinct segment within the financial services sector, they can have an outsized contribution to the economy at large.

“They will support our asset management industry, our lawyers, our accountants… they deploy their capital either in listed assets but also many of them invest in early stage companies, so they can add growth to our start-up ecosystem,” he said.

The InvestHK chief said they are working with various industry organisations to try to attract family offices across the world, from the mainland and Asean, to Europe and the Americas.