October
2024
Hong Kong is set to host its third annual financial summit from November 18th to 20th. A key event aimed at restoring Hong Kong’s reputation as a global financial hub after political challenges and restrictive COVID-19 policies impacted the city’s status as a center of business, the summit includes a closed-door dinner and a main event on the 19th.
Held at the Grand Hyatt Hotel, this year’s summit will bring together over 300 top financial leaders, including JPMorgan President Daniel Pinto, Morgan Stanley CEO Ted Pick, Citigroup CEO Jane Fraser, and Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon. Other major attendees include the heads of HSBC, Standard Chartered, and Blackstone, with discussions set to focus on investing in Asia, private markets, and navigating global complexities.
The summit, initiated in 2022 by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA), serves as a gauge of Hong Kong’s financial standing, particularly as leading banks have scaled back in both Hong Kong and China due to reduced deal-making. The event’s timing just after the U.S. presidential election further emphasizes its significance, given the election’s implications on US-China relations.
Summary
Despite ongoing repression in Hong Kong, foreign executives remain willing to meet in the city for yet another government-organized summit. This gathering appears to be a way for the John Lee administration to project an image of stability and normalcy, covering up the harsh realities faced by citizens under tightening political control.
The government’s focus on hosting high-profile events serves as a distraction from the serious issues of transparency and accountability that continue to plague the city. Instead of addressing fundamental concerns regarding civil liberties and governance, the summit serves as a superficial effort to maintain Hong Kong’s status as a global financial hub. Such actions suggest that the government is more interested in creating a facade of success than in genuinely supporting the financial sector or its people. This contradiction highlights the growing disconnect between the government’s narrative and the actual conditions in Hong Kong, further underscoring the precarious state of its democracy and freedoms.
HKDC’s report on the previous summit, Business Not as Usual, analyzes the troubling aspects of the relationship between foreign companies and the Hong Kong government, urging international companies to create a tailored set of policies, guidelines, and due diligence processes specific to Hong Kong to prevent them from endorsing or providing significant support for the government’s repressive measures.
Analysis
