SFST visits Toronto and calls on enterprises to develop wealth management and family businesses in Hong Kong
The Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, Mr Christopher Hui, started his five-day visit to Canada on May 26 (Toronto Time). His first stop was Toronto, where he met with representatives of two banks and an insurance group immediately after his arrival in the city.
Mr Hui arrived in Toronto in the afternoon. He started his itinerary with a meeting with the Group Head, RBC Wealth Management, Mr Neil McLaughlin, and Executive Vice President and Global Head, Strategy, Products and Digital Investing, Mr Stuart Rutledge, of the Royal Bank of Canada. He then proceeded to Scotiabank to meet with its Group Head for Global Wealth Management, Ms Jacqui Allard, and Vice President, Strategic Cultural Segments, Mr Amit Brahme.
Both banks are deeply interested in the development of the wealth management business in Hong Kong. Mr Hui shared that Hong Kong is currently the largest cross-border wealth management hub in Asia, and some anticipate that Hong Kong will leap into first place globally by 2028. The family office business is an important segment of the asset and wealth management sector in Hong Kong. As of end-2023, the size of private banking and private wealth management business attributed to family offices and private trusts clients reached US$185.2 billion (HK$1,452 billion), providing huge business opportunities for the asset and wealth management sector and other related professional services (such as legal and accounting services). Mr Hui also highlighted the diversity of financial products in Hong Kong and the latest passage of the stablecoins legislation, providing investors with numerous investment options. The banks were encouraged to utilise the developmental strengths of Hong Kong's asset and wealth management industry and establish their presence in Hong Kong.
Mr Hui also met with the Group Vice President and Head of Asia of Power Corporation of Canada, Mr Henry Liu, this evening. He introduced to him the facilitation and concession provided by the Government to family offices looking to set up or expand their business in Hong Kong, such as no licence being required for a single family office under the Securities and Futures Ordinance if it does not carry on a business of regulated activity in Hong Kong. Single family offices can also enjoy profit tax exemption for qualifying transactions. Mr Hui highlighted the Government's efforts in enhancing the preferential tax regimes for funds, single family offices and carried interest, including expanding the scope of "fund" under the tax exemption regime, increasing the types of qualifying transactions eligible for tax concessions for funds and single family offices and enhancing the tax concession arrangement on the distribution of carried interest by private equity funds. The Government targets working out the details of the proposals by this year and submitting the legislative proposals to the Legislative Council for consideration in 2026, striving to implement the relevant measures from the year of assessment 2025/26. Mr Hui called on the company to leverage the ideal business environment with stability and predictability to set up family offices in Hong Kong. Power Corporation of Canada operates a wide range of businesses covering North America, Europe and Asia, including insurance, wealth management and investment businesses.
On May 27 (Toronto Time), Mr Hui will visit two insurance companies, meet with the Hong Kong-Canada Business Association (Toronto Chapter) and attend a business luncheon with financial leaders in Toronto. He will also pay a courtesy call to the Consul-General of the People's Republic of China in Toronto.
SFST visits Toronto and calls on enterprises to develop wealth management and family businesses in Hong Kong Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
SFST visits Toronto and calls on enterprises to develop wealth management and family businesses in Hong Kong Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
SFST visits Toronto and calls on enterprises to develop wealth management and family businesses in Hong Kong Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
Arrangements concluded for residents of seven blocks of Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po to return to their units in batches
The 15 days of arrangements for residents of seven blocks of Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po to return to their units in batches concluded today (May 4). Among the 1 736 households of the seven blocks, a total of 1 674 households (6 265 persons) have returned to their units. The process was generally smooth and completed in an orderly manner.
The Deputy Chief Secretary for Administration, Mr Cheuk Wing-hing, said, "We are very grateful for the understanding and co-operation of the residents. The vast majority of the residents returned to their units within the 15-day period, while only fewer than 10 households required other arrangements. About 50 households decided not to return to their units.
"There were safety hazards at different parts in the seven blocks after the fire. Arranging safe and orderly access for over 1 670 households was highly challenging. To ensure the safety of residents and working staff, meticulous planning was required, including removing unsafe scaffolding, strengthening building structures, installing window safety nets on damaged windows, clearing piles of rubble and debris from common areas, accompanying residents up to the units, providing emotional support, managing crowds, and deploying a large number of interdepartmental supporting staff."
Mr Cheuk expressed heartfelt appreciation to all staff involved in the arrangements. The staff worked together as one team, displaying commitment and empathy in supporting residents and attentively escorting residents and assisting in transporting their belongings on their way down. Their dedication helped ensure that the arrangements proceeded smoothly.
The Government spared no effort in supporting the residents returning to their units. Each day, the Government deployed over 1 000 personnel from various departments, including the Police, the Civil Aid Service (CAS), the Fire Services Department (FSD), the Auxiliary Medical Service (AMS), the Home Affairs Department (HAD), the Social Welfare Department (SWD), the Housing Bureau, and the Housing Department, as well as District Services and Community Care Teams volunteers (Care Team). The Civil Service Bureau (CSB) also activated the "Government-wide Mobilisation" mechanism to bring together greater interdepartmental deployment to support residents.
The Police were fully engaged in the cross-departmental operation from start to finish. Their roles included traffic management in the vicinity of Wang Fuk Court, crowd management at the registration centre, accompanying residents to and from their buildings and in and out of their units, deploying officers to stand guard at the main lobby of the building and on the floors reopened, handling requests from residents for police assistance,helping residents sift through the rubble and ashes to recover their property, assisting in the opening of safes found in the flats, forming quick response teams to attend to residents who might have felt unwell during their return, and helping residents move their belongings.
CAS personnel accompanied and protected the residents when they went upstairs to collect their belongings from beginning to end. CAS tasks included looking after the residents during their time in the buildings as well as assisting them as they went in and out of their units, assisting the elderly and persons with disabilities up and down the stairs, calming their emotions and helping the residents move big and small packages.
Fire and ambulance personnel from the FSD were stationed at the highest reopened floors, providing emergency and medical services. If needed, they transported injured persons from upstairs to the ground level where they would be taken to hospital by ambulance. The AMS set up a first aid station on-site to provide first aid and medical services to residents.
HAD was responsible for registration of residents at the registration centre at the Kwong Fuk Community Hall. The HAD’s duties included verifying identities, preparing identification badges, and matching staff to support the residents to return to their units, etc. HAD, together with the Care Teams from 18 districts, also distributed protective and lighting equipment (including helmets with hair nets, scratch-resistant gloves, and masks) and hygienic and personal items to residents, disinfected and cleaned helmets and flashlights for reuse, helped take care of accompanying persons in the waiting area, and provided trolleys and helped residents carry their belongings to the waiting area, boarding areas and other destinations.
Personnel of the "one social worker per household" scheme of the SWD notified households of their arranged dates and time slots, assisted with preregistration of persons returning to the units, and provided relevant guidance notes to residents. Video clips and leaflets produced by the SWD's clinical psychologists were disseminated and explained to residents to better prepare them psychologically by personnel of the "one social worker per household" scheme. The SWD deployed over 1 700 social workers under the "one social worker per household" scheme to support each household during this operation. Additionally, social workers and clinical psychologists formed specialised teams on reopened floors to provide assistance and accompanied residents with special needs (including family members of the deceased) in returning to their units. Upon completion of this retrieval arrangement, social workers under the "one social worker per household" scheme will continue to follow up on residents’ situations, and clinical psychologists of the SWD will also provide counselling service to those in need and help address their emotions.
To ensure a safe and smooth process, engineering teams of the Housing Bureau and the Housing Department performed several months of extensive preparatory work. These efforts included dismantling dangerous and seriously damaged bamboo scaffolding, conducting structural safety inspections, strengthening severely damaged units, manually clearing piles of rubble and debris from corridors, repeatedly inspecting the stability of ceilings and walls to ensure structural safety, cordoning off hazardous zones, installing window safety nets on damaged windows, and setting up temporary lighting systems, toilets and covered safety walkways. During residents’ return trips, structural engineers and other engineering staff stationed on the building's floors to provide immediate support.
The Food and Environmental Hygiene Department deployed staff to carry out mosquito control work, including clearance of stagnant water and potential mosquito breeding places in the estate, setting up mosquito traps, and conducting fogging operations to kill adult mosquitoes. In addition, the department arranged for a number of mobile toilets to be placed on the ground floor of the buildings for the convenience of residents.
The Transport Department arranged free shuttle bus services to enable residents travelling between Wang Fuk Court and the Tai Po Market MTR Station.
Under the "Government-wide Mobilisation" mechanism, the CSB co-ordinated nine government departments to mobilise civil servants to form Government Quick Response Units to support these access arrangements. These civil servants came from the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department, the Architectural Services Department, the Electrical and Mechanical Services Department, the Environmental Protection Department, the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department, the Lands Department, the Leisure and Cultural Services Department, the Post Office, and the Water Supplies Department. They formed dedicated teams with social workers and clinical psychologists from the SWD, stationed on different floors to provide appropriate support according to residents’ needs, such as providing additional nylon bags and surgical masks, providing flashlight illumination while residents did their packing, helping residents move their belongings, and assisting the Police and the CAS in handling emergencies.
Arrangements concluded for residents of seven blocks of Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po to return to their units in batches Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
Arrangements concluded for residents of seven blocks of Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po to return to their units in batches Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
