The Hong Kong government gazetted a bill on Friday that, if passed, would waive salary tax on fund managers’ performance-linked bonuses, so long as they meet certain requirements, in a move to introduce further tax reform to strengthen the city as a wealth management centre. The bill, which will be first read by lawmakers on…
Hong Kong’s de facto central bank has formed a group of industry experts to help remove legal and regulatory hurdles to tokenized bonds, as authorities seek to move beyond pilot projects and encourage wider adoption from private issuers. The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) said on Friday it had established a Tokenised Bond Expert Group…
A proposed increase in the Hong Kong government’s borrowing cap for its bond programmes to HK$900 billion (US$115 billion) will be sufficient to finance infrastructure projects over the next three years, officials have said, while leaving the door open to further rises in the long run if needed. Andrew Lai Chi-wah, permanent secretary for financial…
Swire Coca-Cola has won a HK$31.9 million (US$4 million) contract to supply Bonaqua water to some Hong Kong government offices, following a HK$52.9 million procurement scandal last year. According to a Government Logistics Department notice, Swire Coca-Cola was awarded the 27-month contract on Tuesday to supply more than 1.46 million bottles of drinking water to…
Middle East banks and wealthy investors are poised to increase their investments in Hong Kong amid geopolitical tensions to diversify their risk and capture growing opportunities in Asia, according to the head of InvestHK, the government agency tasked with attracting foreign investment. A couple of Middle East banks were in the process of setting up…
Hong Kong’s licensed moneylenders will face strict new regulations starting in August, including debt servicing ratio caps for low-income earners and a full ban on using loan referees – a move lawmakers say should reduce harassment by debt collectors. Lawmakers also said on Saturday that the measures outlined by the Financial Services and the Treasury…
Hong Kong and Singapore have crossed swords over their ambitions to be the world’s gold trading hub, but experts say the city holds an advantage over its Southeast Asian rival, citing its access to mainland China’s robust market. As Hong Kong pushed ahead with measures to create an ecosystem for gold trading – highlighted as…
Hong Kong’s innovation and technology (I&T), intellectual property and investment promotion departments will receive budget increases of at least 10 per cent in the coming financial year, even as the government moves to curb recurrent spending, while the environmental branch and public broadcaster face sharp cuts of 70 and 28 per cent, respectively. The Home…
Hong Kong authorities will hold three logistics department officers accountable over their roles in a bottled water procurement scandal, with the former director, set to have his Silver Bauhinia Star revoked, cleared of direct oversight. Civil service chief Ingrid Yeung Ho Poi-yan said a probe into the scandal involving the HK$166 million bottled water procurement…
Hong Kong’s government is expected to announce next month the results of its investigation into a bottled water scandal that rocked the city and disciplinary action against those officials involved after confirming that the probe has been completed. The Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau, which set up a task force to probe the scandal…