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Hong Kong leader John Lee outlines measures to lure international insurers, make city regional risk-management hub
- Chief Executive John Lee unveiled a road map for the development of the local insurance industry at the annual Asian Insurance Forum on Monday
- The city can act as insurance hub for the Greater Bay Area, the Belt and Road Initiative and projects related to climate change
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Hong Kong will introduce a wide range of measures, including tax incentives and regulatory reforms, to lure more international insurers to set up headquarters in the city as part of an effort to compete with Singapore for the crown as the region’s risk-management hub.
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Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu unveiled a road map for the development of the local insurance industry on Monday at the annual Asian Insurance Forum, saying that he wants to see the city act as the insurance hub for the Greater Bay Area (GBA), the Belt and Road Initiative and projects related to climate change.
“The insurance industry, being an integral and substantial part of our economy, will continue to play an important role in this new chapter for Hong Kong,” Lee said at the in-person forum attended by hundreds of top insurance executives.
Twelve of the world’s top 20 insurance firms, or 60 per cent, have chosen Hong Kong as a base for their regional operations, Lee said.
However, almost a third of international insurance companies in Hong Kong said earlier this year that they were considering downsizing their operations because of a shortage of talent exacerbated by the city’s strict Covid-19 policies, according to a survey by the Hong Kong Federation of Insurers (HKFI).
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