Record high numbers of companies and start-ups affirm Hong Kong's incomparable business advantages
According to the results of the 2025 Annual Survey of Companies in Hong Kong with Parent Companies Located outside Hong Kong and the 2025 Startup Survey announced by the Government today (January 26), the number of companies in Hong Kong with Chinese Mainland or overseas parent companies rose to 11 070 in 2025, while the number of start-ups in Hong Kong increased to 5 221, both reaching record highs again. The results demonstrate that Hong Kong's unique attractiveness to enterprises from around the globe continues to rise, and that the city is the ideal investment destination to set up or expand businesses.
Mr Algernon Yau, Photo source: reference image
The Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, Mr Algernon Yau, said, "Even though geopolitics and the global economic and trade landscape are evolving, Hong Kong has been proactively demonstrating its incomparably unique advantages under the 'one country, two systems' principle, as the best two-way springboard for overseas enterprises to tap into the vast Chinese Mainland market and for Chinese Mainland enterprises to go global. Together with the wide array of the latest initiatives to promote economic development, including the establishment of the Task Force on Supporting Mainland Enterprises in Going Global, the formulation of preferential policy packages to attract high value-added industries to Hong Kong, the accelerated development of the Northern Metropolis, the establishment of the Economic and Trade Office in Kuala Lumpur, etc, Hong Kong's advantages will continue to strengthen, thereby accelerating the injection of new impetus to our economy and providing more opportunities for both Chinese Mainland and overseas companies based in Hong Kong.
"On another note, the number of start-ups in Hong Kong continues to grow at a double-digit percentage rate, signifying that the city is an ideal place for start-ups to thrive, and demonstrating the great confidence that global start-up entrepreneurs have in Hong Kong. Start-ups can leverage the strengths of Hong Kong - including its concentration of internationally renowned universities and research institutes, entrepreneurial talent, and investors from around the world, as well as a strong local network of incubators and accelerators, to rapidly develop innovation and technology businesses that showcase their strengths," Mr Yau added.
The results of the above two local surveys fully display the confidence of Chinese Mainland and overseas companies in Hong Kong's future development. Also, Hong Kong recently received exceptional rankings in reports by various international institutes. For example, Hong Kong was again ranked by the Fraser Institute as the world's freest economy, and moved up to third place overall in foreign direct investment inflows in the World Investment Report 2025 released by the United Nations Trade and Development. Such recognition demonstrates the world's growing awareness of Hong Kong as an international hub for business and investment.
According to the 2025 Annual Survey of Companies in Hong Kong with Parent Companies Located outside Hong Kong jointly conducted by Invest Hong Kong (InvestHK) and the Census and Statistics Department (C&SD), there were 11 070 companies in Hong Kong with parent companies located outside Hong Kong in 2025, representing an increase of 11 per cent, which amounted to 1 110 companies, when compared with 2024. The number of people employed reached 509 000, recording an increase of 3 per cent year on year.
Analysed by the location of parent company, in 2025, the Chinese Mainland was ranked first (3 090), followed by the United States and Japan (both 1 550), the United Kingdom (770) and Singapore (590).
Analysed by major line of business in Hong Kong, among those 11 070 companies, in 2025, the import/export trade, wholesale and retail sector topped the list (5 100), followed by the financing and banking sector (2 390), and the professional, business and education services sector (1 770).
In addition, based on the results of InvestHK's 2025 Startup Survey, start-ups in Hong Kong continued to flourish with a record high number of 5 221, up 11 per cent year on year. These start-ups engaged 19 753 persons, representing an increase of 12 per cent year on year, spanned across different sectors, including financial technology; information, computer and technology; biotechnology; education and learning; and health and medical, etc.
The results of the two surveys have been uploaded onto the websites of the C&SD (www.censtatd.gov.hk/en/EIndexbySubject.html?pcode=B1110004&scode=360) and InvestHK (www.investhk.gov.hk/en/resource-centre/?type=brochures-and-guides-general) respectively.
Record high numbers of companies and start-ups affirm Hong Kong's incomparable business advantages. Photo source: reference image
Inaugural Global Business Summit Brings Global Leaders Together to Drive Finance-Industry Integration
The inaugural Global Business Summit (GBS) was successfully held today (January 27) at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, providing forward-looking, multi-dimensional insights into the prospects, challenges, and opportunities facing various industries.
The GBS was held on the second day of the annual flagship event, the Asian Financial Forum. It was jointly organised by the Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau, the Office for Attracting Strategic Enterprises (OASES) of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government, and the Hong Kong Trade Development Council. With over 3 500 global leaders in attendance, the event highlighted Hong Kong's unique role as a "Super Connector" and "Super Value-Adder," further solidifying the city's position as international financial and innovation and technology (I&T) hubs.
Echoing the theme of "Finance Empowering Business," the GBS focused on strategies for financial–industrial integration and the latest market trends. Discussions included life and health technology, artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, new energy, fintech, and other fast-growing sectors. Participants explored how cross-sector collaboration can generate synergies, drive industrial upgrading, and leverage Hong Kong's strength as a financial and trading centre to support Chinese Mainland enterprises in going global. This collaboration also aims to attract more international capital to reinforce and foster ecosystem development, strengthening Hong Kong's role in finance and innovation.
The Financial Secretary, Mr Paul Chan, stressed the importance of Hong Kong's status as an international financial centre. Henotedthat empowering industries through finance would foster deeperintegrationand collaborative development between finance and industry. He stated in hisopening remarks "Looking ahead, trade, finance and innovation and technology will be the three principal drivers of our economic growth." Mr Chan pointed out that tailored incentive packages, such as land grants, premium concessions, tax incentives and other facilitation measures, would be prepared to welcome technology enterprises to establish a presence in the Northern Metropolis.
OASES, as a co-organiser of the GBS, actively engaged with global leaders from existing and potential strategic enterprises across various sectors, including AI & Data Science, fintech, advanced manufacturing and new energy technology, and life and health technology, enabling them to exchange ideas as guest speakers and provide professional and diverse industry perspectives.
The Director-General of OASES, Mr Peter Yan, said, "The successful debut of the GBS fully demonstrates Hong Kong's unique status as both the global financial and I&T hubs. The GBS has become an important platform for international collaboration, underscoring Hong Kong's strategic role in driving deeper integration between finance and industry, and providing global enterprises with new opportunities to explore and unlock value."
Since its establishment, OASES has actively promoted Hong Kong's unique advantages and policies, successfully attracting more than 100 strategic enterprises to set up in the city. These enterprises are expected to bring in approximately HK$60 billion of investment and create more than 22 000 quality jobs, further strengthening Hong Kong's position as an I&T hub.
Jiangsu Hengrui Pharmaceuticals, a leading global innovative pharmaceutical enterprise, actively participated in the GBS and joined the thematic panel titled "Biomedicine 2026: Trends, Challenges and Opportunities". The panel provided an indepth analysis of the latest developments in the global biomedical technology industry and examined the opportunities and challenges facing by the sector. Topics covered included cuttingedge scientific breakthroughs, transformation in clinical application, regulatory changes, and how cross-sector collaboration can drive continuous innovation in life and health technology.
The Vice Chairman of Jiangsu Hengrui Pharmaceuticals, Mr Dai Hongbin, said, "Hengrui places significant importance on Hong Kong's strategic position in the international innovation ecosystem. We are excited to enhance our collaboration with OASES to drive advancements, promote breakthroughs in biomedical technology through research, clinical practice and industrialisation, while actively contributing to the development of Hong Kong's innovation ecosystem." He also noted that the GBS serves as a stage for pharmaceutical enterprises to share knowledge on life and health science and medical innovation from various perspectives, fostering collaboration across sectors and global resource integration.
Vice President and Chief Economist of JD Group, Dr Shen Jianguang,joined a thematic panel discussion titled "AI Infrastructure: Driving Intelligent Supply" with other distinguished guests. The session delved into strategies for the practical use of AI technologies, investment priorities, and fostering industrial collaboration. It explored the growing importance of AI infrastructure as a key component of intelligent supply chains, smart manufacturing, and innovative business models, and its significant impact on the global industrial landscape.
Dr Shen noted that Hong Kong provides a vibrant and highly internationalised environment for AI enterprises, enabling them to expand their businesses and drive innovation. He emphasised that the GBS is a valuable platform that promotes the exchange of ideas and crosssector collaboration, while also creating important opportunities to explore new growth and advance industrial upgrading.
Dr Shen said, "With the rapid development of AI infrastructure, Hong Kong plays a greater role in data science, fintech and smart manufacturing, serving as a strategic hub linking the Chinese Mainland with international markets. We look forward to deepening co-operation with OASES through the GBS, driving the application of AI technologies across broader industrial scenarios, and contributing to the continued growth of Hong Kong's innovation ecosystem."
Moving forward, OASES will continuously align with the National 15th FiveYear Plan to elevate Hong Kong's status as a leading international hub for finance, shipping, trade, and innovation and technology. OASES will continue to leverage Hong Kong's unique role as a "Super Connector" and "Super ValueAdder" to accelerate growth in finance and I&T, and deepen global interactions. OASES will continue to attract high-potential technology enterprises to set up in Hong Kong and support them to thrive globally through our city. This initiative is designed to drive significant advancements in key emerging industries: AI & Data Science, fintech, life and health technology, advanced manufacturing and new energy technology, and cultural and creative technology. Ultimately, these efforts are intended to further solidify Hong Kong's competitive position as a global I&T hub.
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Inaugural Global Business Summit Brings Global Leaders Together to Drive Finance-Industry Integration Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
Inaugural Global Business Summit Brings Global Leaders Together to Drive Finance-Industry Integration Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
Inaugural Global Business Summit Brings Global Leaders Together to Drive Finance-Industry Integration Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
Inaugural Global Business Summit Brings Global Leaders Together to Drive Finance-Industry Integration Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
Inaugural Global Business Summit Brings Global Leaders Together to Drive Finance-Industry Integration Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
Inaugural Global Business Summit Brings Global Leaders Together to Drive Finance-Industry Integration Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
Inaugural Global Business Summit Brings Global Leaders Together to Drive Finance-Industry Integration Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
