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Edith Lin

Elizabeth Cheung

Hong Kong is committed to developing family office businesses to attract philanthropic investment and boost the city’s status as a global charity hub, Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu has said.
The city leader said on Monday his administration was determined to develop Hong Kong into a global centre for philanthropy in which family offices could integrate philanthropy into their wealth management strategies to drive social change.
He added that the city could provide philanthropists with wealth management tools and channel their resources into initiatives.
“We are determined to realise Hong Kong as a go-to destination for global family offices passionate about making a difference,” Lee said as he gave a video opening speech at the Hong Kong Jockey Club’s Philanthropy for Better Cities Forum.
“[We] expect our family office businesses to grow, attracting even more philanthropic investment and capital to Hong Kong. That will certainly boost our status as a global philanthropic centre.”
Lee noted that Hong Kong was home to about 2,700 single-family offices, with over half of them founded by individuals whose wealth exceeded US$50 million.
He added the Hong Kong Academy for Wealth Legacy, an institute dedicated to strengthening the city as a leading global family office hub, earlier launched its charity depository Impact Link to connect donors with projects.
The city leader described Hong Kong as an “ideal place” to realise philanthropists’ ambition and passion to give to society, pointing to the city’s governing principle of “one country, two systems” which he said could confer advantages brought by China and the world.
He said Hong Kong had a “rich tradition of giving” backed by the government’s support, citing more than 10,000 tax-exempt charities in the city.
Approved charitable donations allowed under the city’s profits and salaries tax also amounted to some HK$7 billion (US$898 million) a year respectively, he added.
These “impressive numbers”, he said, reflected the city’s commitment of private donors to different social causes, as well as the government’s efforts to attract global family offices and asset owners.
Speaking at the same forum, Australia’s former Prime Minister Julia Gillard, now the chairwoman of the global charitable foundation Wellcome Trust, said charities should engage in constant dialogue and discussion with the government.
She added that her foundation did not intend to substitute the government’s role in social initiatives, otherwise authorities would reduce funding and the charity providing funding would be “ameliorating” the political risk.
Gillard said such an approach would potentially increase the government’s appetite for further cuts.

She added that governments were partners in philanthropy work by offering tax revenue exemptions, and whether they should contribute more to individual projects would depend on their priorities and community needs.
Gillard, whose foundation focused on funding health research, expressed hope in an interview with the Post that Hong Kong scientists would be among those working together more frequently with their peers who had less resources.
“We increasingly want scientists from very high capacity environments like Hong Kong to be collaborating with scientists in lower income environments and bringing a joint proposal,” she said.
With the foundation’s main focus on discovery research, infectious diseases, climate and health, as well as mental health, Hong Kong scientists could apply for funding from the trust if their research projects fell under those streams, Gillard said.
She said the trust was well advised on Hong Kong’s situation as former University of Hong Kong medical dean Gabriel Leung also sits on the board of the foundation. Leung is also the executive director, charities and community of the Hong Kong Jockey Club.
Gillard also highlighted that artificial intelligence would be a pressing priority in the future development of healthcare research.
She said the trust’s approach on AI would be considered in conjunction with existing key areas of funding research and that it was exploring whether to offer help to Asian researchers in accessing AI tools.


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Hong Kong dedicated to developing family office businesses for philanthropy: John Lee

Hong Kong Jockey Club’s Philanthropy for Better Cities Forum included guests such as Chief Secretary Eric Chan (seventh from the left, front row). Photo: Elson Li

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City can provide philanthropists with wealth management tools and channel their resources into initiatives, Lee adds


City can provide philanthropists with wealth management tools and channel their resources into initiatives, Lee adds.
