Honoring Excellence: Inaugural Hong Kong Accounting Profession Lifetime Achievement Ceremony Celebrates Five Distinguished Careers

Speech by FS at Inaugural Hong Kong Accounting Profession Lifetime Achievement Honour Gala Dinner

Following is the speech by the Financial Secretary, Mr Paul Chan, at the inaugural Hong Kong Accounting Profession Lifetime Achievement Honour Gala Dinner today (November 3):

Agnes (Co-President of SMART Accountants Association (SAA) Ms Agnes Chan), Susanna (Co-President of SAA Ms Susanna Chiu), (Director-General of the Coordination Department of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Mr Zhu Wen), Peter (Honouree Mr Peter Wong), Brian (Honouree Mr T Brian Stevenson), Nellie (Honouree Ms Nellie Fong), Eric (Honouree Mr Eric Li), Carlson (Honouree Mr Carlson Tong), distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen,

Good evening. It is a pleasure to join you for the inaugural Hong Kong Accounting Profession Lifetime Achievement Honour Ceremony.

My thanks to the SMART Accountants Association, and especially Agnes and Susanna, for bringing us together. You have given us an occasion not simply to recognise distinguished careers, but to reflect on what makes those careers matter.

Tonight is also a personal pleasure. Peter, Brian, Nellie, Eric and Carlson are familiar faces to many of us - and people I am very pleased to see honoured together. It is good to have this opportunity to pause, recognise their contributions, and say something we perhaps do not say often enough: thank you.

Because a lifetime of achievement is about more than the positions they have held or the awards they have received. It is about the trust they have earned. The people they have helped. And the standards they leave for others to build on.

That is what we celebrate tonight.

Accountants are often called the guardians of financial integrity. And rightly so. But we should be clear about what integrity means in practice.

It means asking the difficult question when an explanation seems too convenient. Giving an honest assessment when a client would prefer reassurance. And standing by your professional judgement when the pressure is to look the other way.

It is more than complying with the rules. It is understanding why those rules matter - and whom they protect.

Because behind the numbers are people. An investor committing savings. An entrepreneur seeking finance. Employees whose livelihoods depend on a business being sound.

They may never meet you. But they rely on your work.

That is why integrity is not an abstract ideal. It is a responsibility to people who depend on information they can trust.

And for Hong Kong, that trust is fundamental. As you help businesses grow, guide investment and support Mainland enterprises going global, you do more than provide professional advice. You uphold our reputation as a place where information is credible, standards are respected and people can do business with confidence.

To our five honourees: tonight, we celebrate your individual achievements. But we also celebrate something you share - a lifetime of commitment to this profession and to Hong Kong.

The most important lesson from these distinguished careers is not a title to aspire to or a position to attain. It is a standard to live up to: success matters, but how we achieve it matters just as much.

That lesson will remain essential as our profession enters a new chapter. Technology is changing how we work. Sustainability reporting and evolving global standards are asking more of us.

We should meet that change with curiosity and confidence. Learn the new tools. Ask better questions. But never lose sight of the responsibility that comes with our expertise.

To our younger accountants: the careers we honour tonight show what is possible. Your task is not to repeat them. It is to build on them - and bring your own ideas, energy and sense of purpose to the challenges ahead.

Peter, Brian, Nellie, Eric and Carlson: your legacy lives not only in the work you have done, but in the people you have encouraged - and the possibilities you have opened for those who follow.

Tonight, we honour five distinguished careers. We also look forward to the many more they will inspire.

Thank you.

Source: AI-found images

Speech by FS at Inaugural Hong Kong Accounting Profession Lifetime Achievement Honour Gala Dinner Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

Speech by FS at Inaugural Hong Kong Accounting Profession Lifetime Achievement Honour Gala Dinner Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

Source: AI-found images

Local premiere of animation "Odium Zero" supported by CCIDA held

The local premiere of the original animation "Odium Zero", subsidised by the Cultural and Creative Industries Development Agency (CCIDA) under the Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau, was held today (November 3). The screening featured the 30-minute extended cut of "Episode 1: The Ash Fall", which will commence its special screenings at selected cinemas in Hong Kong from November 7.

Speaking at the premiere, the Commissioner for Cultural and Creative Industries, Miss Drew Lai, remarked that the successful launch of "Odium Zero" demonstrates a positive result borne out of the efforts of Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Regionin promoting the development of the creative industries. CCIDA will continue to support local creators in developing more cartoon and animation intellectual properties (IPs) that have competitiveness in the international market through diversified support schemes, as well as assisting the industry in participating in global film festivals and trade platforms, thereby promoting IP transactions and cross-sectoral collaborations.

"Odium Zero" is one of the outstanding works supported by CCIDA's 3rd Future Animation - AI-assisted Animation Production Support Scheme. Written and directed by James Hung, executive produced by Jacky Chu, and produced by ORINPIX Studios Limited, the animation tells the story of an apocalypse triggered by lies. By combining traditional film and television production skills with the martial arts choreography of Hong Kong action films, science-fiction elements and cutting-edge technology, the creative team has successfully created an animated work with distinctive local cultural characteristics.

Earlier this year, the work had its global launch at Hong Kong Comic Con 2026, was screened at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival in France, and was successfully shortlisted for the 22nd Chinese American Film Festival in Los Angeles. The creative team also set up a local pop-up store last month to promote the work and its IP-related merchandise.

For more information about the 3rd Future Animation - AI-Assisted Animation Production Support Scheme, please visit

futureanimation.com.hk/en/home-en.

Local premiere of animation "Odium Zero" supported by CCIDA held Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

Local premiere of animation "Odium Zero" supported by CCIDA held Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases