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The Hong Kong government will continue to support the growth of its financial services industry, including insurance, according to its finance chief.
During the delivery of Hong Kong’s annual budget on Wednesday, Finance Secretary Paul Chan said that while Hong Kong is the third largest financial centre in the world, ranking high in various financial services such as insurance, banking, stock trading, and asset management, it still has significant room for improvement.
“However, to cope with the increasing competition, we have set out a clear vision and blueprint for boosting the development of Hong Kong’s financial services industry,” Chan was quoted as saying by Xinhua.
The official added that aside from strengthening its financial markets, Hong Kong should also strengthen its role as a bridge linking mainland China with the international financial market.
Furthermore, Hong Kong is preparing to issue its first set of government green bonds to promote the development of green finance, which places a premium on sustainable development.
The government will promote marine insurance and the underwriting of specialty risks through tax concessions, and allow the creation of special purpose vehicle companies in order to issue insurance-linked securities.
The HK government is also studying the establishment of a limited partnership regime and introduction of a tax arrangement to attract private equity funds to set up and operate in Hong Kong, Chan added.
