【Family Office 2.0】Financial Secretary Paul Chan: Three Major Directions for Deep Development of the Ecosystem - East-West Integration, Industry Integration, and Benefits for the Public

Three years ago, the Hong Kong government announced a policy declaration on developing family office services in Hong Kong. Industry reports show that by the end of last year, over 3,380 family offices had established a presence in Hong Kong. Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po stated that to further develop Hong Kong’s Family Office 2.0 or the entire ecosystem, it must evolve toward deeper and more integrated approaches, outlining three core directions in detail.

1. East-West Convergence: Deep Integration of Local Traditional Family Offices with Global Forces

Paul Chan emphasized that the primary task is to promote the integration of Hong Kong’s longstanding local family offices with regional and global family offices.

• Cross-Regional Dialogue: For example, the “Wealth for Good in Hong Kong” summit forum held this Tuesday (24th) featured in-depth conversations between historic Hong Kong family offices (such as Hysan Development) and emerging or established family offices from Germany (like Leica), Europe, the United States, and Australia.
• Strategic Significance: Through exchanges in wealth management between the East and West, reinforce Hong Kong’s position as the premier hub for global family offices.

2. Industry Engagement: Capital Injection into Innovation, Green Finance, and Social Enterprises

The influence of family offices should extend beyond mere asset management to broader participation in Hong Kong’s economic and financial activities.

• Diversified Investment Focus: Encourage family offices to invest in technology innovation, green finance, and social enterprises.
• Ecosystem Interaction: Collaborate with professional platforms like Bloomberg to ensure these key areas permeate various financial summits, promoting capital flow into socially impactful industries.

3. Benefiting the Public: From “Wall Street” to “Main Street”

Paul Chan stressed that the benefits of the family office ecosystem should not be limited to the top-tier financial markets of “Wall Street,” but should also extend to the broader society (“Main Street”). This is a core reason for promoting philanthropy.

• Leveraging Hong Kong’s Charitable Network: Hong Kong currently has over 10,000 registered charitable organizations. The government hopes family offices will actively participate and genuinely assist vulnerable communities.
• Hong Kong Wealth Legacy Academy (HKAWL): Since its establishment, the academy has attracted about 700 family members. Future plans include promoting more local and regional charitable projects, sharing experiences, and encouraging family offices to pursue wealth growth while fulfilling social responsibilities.