Police smash a hidden plot. On December 11 and 12, the National Security Department rounded up nine local men running secret military-style training in dingy industrial units. Some had even shown up at the Tai Po Wang Fuk Court fire scene decked out in black-clad riot gear, itching for chaos.
Hong Kong cops pull no punches. National Security chief superintendent Li Kwai-wah announces the first-ever bust under Section 13 of the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance—illegal drilling. That means offering or joining weapon drills, military exercises, or tactical formations without proper approval. Once convicted, defendants face up to seven years behind bars. Worse if foreign forces pull the strings: 10 years max.
Guns, Bombs, and Terror Vibes
The Insider spots the real red flags here. These aren't weekend warriors—they're diving into firearms training and bomb-making.
First, as Security Secretary Chris Tang Ping-keung points out: forget the label, judge the poison—offensive weapons, military maneuvers, formation drills. Cops seize homemade explosives with fuses primed to blow, plus 3D printers churning out gun parts. This screams bomb plots and crime sprees, way beyond "training." Alarming is an understatement.
Police keep dismantling these nightmares. They've cracked explosives and firearms rings, gutted terror cells. This bust screams terrorism brewing—like the judge in the Caritas Medical Centre bomb plot warned: a straight-up war on society.
Second, some of these guys were spotted at the Tai Po blaze.
Intelligence paints a grim picture. Some arrestees lurked at Tai Po's Wang Fuk Court fire in classic 2019 anti-extradition garb. One suspect brags about using his new skills—fighting, guns, knives—to target cops and officials if riots reignite. Others trash the government online for "lousy relief," fanning hate against the SAR.
These aren't new faces. Some rioted multiple times in 2019's anti-extradition mess. Take Mr. Li: he ran a Telegram hate group plotting petrol bombs, guns, even a "massacre." Jailed 29 months for sedition and wounding conspiracy.
Out on parole by late 2024, still under supervision—one kept linking up and drilling illegally. No surprise—the Office for Safeguarding National Security called it: ulterior motives stir in crises, spewing lies to wreck relief efforts.
Foreign Shadows Loom Large?
Moreover, whether foreign funding is involved.
The Hong Kong Police Force stayed on the hunt. They'll track these plotters, make more arrests if needed. Top probe: involvement of foreign forces and money? The law slams extra time for that meddling.
History repeats. Police had already nailed three from the banned “Hong Kong Democratic Independence Union” for secession conspiracy. Fugitive founder Keung Ka-wai built a fake "army," trained recruits for "Hong Kong independence." One kid defendant of just 15, suckered into jail.
These overseas fugitives won't quit. They spew rhetoric, lure HongKong youth into the trap, biding time for "resistance." SAR government banned “Hong Kong Parliament” and the “Hong Kong Democratic Independence Union”: starves their funds, warns everyone: don't get poisoned and snared.
Bottom line: Hong Kong looks calm, but radicals churn below the surface. Stay sharp, and beware of those hell-bent on shattering the peace.
Ariel
** 博客文章文責自負,不代表本公司立場 **
History was made in global finance this week. Boston Consulting Group (BCG) released its 2026 Global Wealth Report on Wednesday (27 May), revealing that Hong Kong's cross-border wealth management assets reached US$2.95 trillion — a 10.7% year-on-year surge. That figure edged past Switzerland's US$2.94 trillion by roughly US$10 billion, making Hong Kong the world's largest cross-border wealth management center for the first time.
The milestone triggered a global media storm. More than 600 overseas reports followed the release, with the Associated Press, the Financial Times, Bloomberg, Reuters, and Canada's National Post all turning their focus to this defining shift in the global wealth management landscape.
Hong Kong's lead over Switzerland is slim — but the growth gap is not. Bloomberg noted that Hong Kong overtook Switzerland by a narrow margin, driven by an influx of capital from the Chinese Mainland and a rebound in Hong Kong's local stock market. What matters far more, though, is trajectory: BCG projects that cross-border wealth managed in Hong Kong will grow at roughly 9% per year between 2025 and 2030, compared to only about 6% for Switzerland.
Bloomberg goes further. By 2030, the gap in assets under management between the two centers is forecast to widen to nearly US$600 billion. Today's slim lead is not a finish line — it is the opening lap of a far larger structural shift.
Two core drivers explain Hong Kong's rise. The Financial Times focused on the diversification appetite of wealthy investors from the Chinese Mainland. Post-pandemic, investors sought to spread assets across jurisdictions to hedge against geopolitical risk — and a surge of that capital flowed into Hong Kong, helping it topple Switzerland's long-standing status as the traditional safe haven.
Financial Times coverage of the report.
Reuters added the numbers: wealth from China and a boom in IPOs in 2025 drove Hong Kong's cross-border assets to US$2.95 trillion.
BCG report co-author Michael Kahlich cuts to the structural point. "What ultimately matters is client proximity," he said. His view: two hubs are now forming in global wealth management — Singapore and Hong Kong serving Asia, and Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States serving the West. Hong Kong's rise, in other words, is not simply about beating Switzerland. It reflects a structural migration of the global wealth management center of gravity towards Asia — a shift BCG describes as "unlikely to be reversed."
This development has prompted deep soul-searching in Switzerland. The FT quoted a UBS banker based in Zurich who questioned whether Switzerland had done enough to actively defend its position in wealth management — or had simply been coasting on the strength of its stable environment. Reuters noted that while Switzerland's growth rate is slower, its client base is more diversified, spanning regions across the globe. That breadth could prove a resilience advantage, whereas Asia's hubs remain heavily reliant on growth from the Chinese market.
BCG acknowledges that Switzerland retains unique value in navigating geopolitical uncertainty — particularly in attracting safe-haven flows amid ongoing instability in the Middle East. Yet BCG's own projections expose a key tension: diversification may bring stability, but against the backdrop of Asian wealth growing at roughly 9% per year, Switzerland risks a continued relative decline if it does not actively adapt.
Across international media coverage, one competitive advantage of Hong Kong was repeatedly emphasized — its connectivity function under "One Country, Two Systems." The Associated Press highlighted how Hong Kong's close ties with the Mainland market have driven its wealth management business. Reuters likewise noted that Hong Kong "is cementing its role as China's gateway to global markets."
This is more than a geopolitical dividend — it reflects deliberate policy work. Hong Kong issued a family office policy statement in 2023, followed by tax incentives and the New Capital Investment Entrant Scheme. Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po stated after the report's release that Hong Kong's free, open, transparent, and predictable economic policies — alongside a stable and secure investment environment — are attracting a growing number of ultra-high-net-worth individuals and family offices to set up in the city. By end-2025, more than 3,380 single-family offices were operating in Hong Kong, up more than 25% from two years prior.
A slim lead is a warning signal as much as a trophy. The Hong Kong Economic Journal editorial noted that while Hong Kong surpassing Switzerland is a testament to the advantages of "One Country, Two Systems," Singapore is closing the gap at an annual growth rate of 10.3%, and Switzerland still holds the resilience of a diversified client base. Whether Hong Kong can sustain its position depends on its ability to broaden its global client base while consolidating its role as China's gateway.
A century-old wealth management order is witnessing a profound "East rising, West declining" moment. Hong Kong's displacement of Switzerland with US$2.95 trillion in cross-border wealth management assets is not merely a triumph for one city — it is a reflection of a shifting tide in the direction of global capital flows.
Yet, the real contest is not today's margin; it is the gap in growth rates that will decide the winner over the coming decade. As BCG put it, the future of wealth management centers is not about who offers the best safe haven — it is about who can stay closest to clients. And Asia is rapidly becoming the place where those clients are.
