The Business Times
business-time-50
THE BOTTOM LINE

Hong Kong’s low-tax lure is getting a reality check

A cut in levies may not be the unequivocal boon for the city’s financial sector

Summarise
google-preferred-sourceAdd BT as a preferred source
Published Tue, Aug 11, 2026 · 06:00 PM
    • Premium office vacancy rates in the Central Business District in Hong Kong are at their lowest since 2023, while rents rose by 6 per cent in the first half of 2026.
    • Premium office vacancy rates in the Central Business District in Hong Kong are at their lowest since 2023, while rents rose by 6 per cent in the first half of 2026. PHOTO: REUTERS

    [HONG KONG] The competitiveness of Hong Kong as a financial centre is about to be tested.

    The low-tax haven has two opposing forces that promise to transform its US$5.4 trillion asset-management industry, which overtook Switzerland as the world’s largest cross-border wealth hub in 2025.

    The city is widely expected to approve a landmark tax reform designed to attract overseas asset managers.

    The Bottom LineHong KongTax incentivesChina

    TRENDING NOW

    Tribunal Magistrate Jared Kang described dismissal law as “a little more layered, difficult and unclear than it perhaps needed to be”.

    Firm loses wrongful dismissal case despite following termination clause

    UOB’s asset quality was a recurring theme across all broker notes.

    Citi, OCBC downgrade UOB post-Q2 results; RHB upgrades on valuation

    ST Engineering secures S$2.9 billion in new contracts in Q2 2026, 38.3% down from S$4.7 billion in Q2 2025.

    ST Engineering shares fall as much as 4.7% after reporting softer Q2 orders

    Yeoh Pei Xien is the youngest grandchild of Yeoh Tiong Lay, who founded Malaysian multinational conglomerate YTL Corporation.

    Yeoh Pei Xien: YTL’s third-gen scion with a pastor’s heart

    Latest T-bills Treasury Bills Results & Interest NewsLatest SSB Singapore Savings Bonds NewsLatest COE Certificate of Entitlement News
    Latest Johor-Singapore SEZ NewsLatest BTO Build To Order & Sales of Balance NewsLatest STI Straits Times Index NewsLatest SGX Dividends, Share Price NewsLatest Bonds Market NewsLatest Singapore Stocks To Buy NewsLatest Singapore Economy News
    View More