The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) has welcomed a mutual recognition funds agreement between Hong Kong and China, announced by the Securities and Futures Commission and the China Securities Regulatory Commission.
The agreement means that the client base of Hong Kong-domiciled funds will expand to include mainland investors, while mainland funds will be available to global investors through a mutual recognition arrangement.
CEO of HKMA Norman Chan said: “This is another milestone in the liberalisation of the mainland’s capital account after the establishment of mutual stock market access between Shanghai and Hong Kong.”
He added: “More fund administration, asset management, distribution and marketing activities and other related functions will take place in Hong Kong.”
The move is designed to help facilitate Hong Kong’s development in to a fully functional Asian asset servicing centre, and to improve links between Hong Kong and China in terms of both infrastructure and regulatory cooperation.
Chan said: "For the implementation of mutual recognition of funds, the HKMA is working closely with relevant institutions on the mainland to establish an efficient fund processing platform to provide an automatic channel for cross border transactions and cash settlement. I look forward to seeing the successful implementation of the arrangement.”
