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On 8 February 2024, the Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau of Hong Kong (FSTB) released a public consultation (“Consultation”) on legislative proposals to introduce a licensing regime (“Proposed Regime”) for providers of over-the-counter (OTC) trading services of virtual assets (VA). The Proposed Regime will be regulated by the Commissioner of Customs and Excise. The Consultation represents the latest step in the city to further enhance the VA regulatory framework as outlined by the Hong Kong Government in its 2022 Policy Statement on Development of VA in Hong Kong.

On 23 August 2021, the new Inspection Regime (“Inspection Regime”) under the Companies Ordinance (Cap. 622) came into effect. It applies to both Hong Kong-incorporated companies and registered non-Hong Kong companies and has been implemented in three phases. Phase 3 of the new inspection regime will come into effect from 27 December 2023, allowing directors and other relevant individuals to apply to withhold their protected information from public inspection.

On 26 September 2023, The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited published its consultation paper on GEM listing reforms. The proposals have the objective of encouraging and facilitating listings of small and/or medium-sized enterprises on GEM while upholding high standards of investor protection. The consultation period will close on 6 November 2023. Subject to market feedback, the Exchange expects that the rule amendments will come into effect in early 2024.

In June 2023, the Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data issued an updated Guidance on Data Breach Handling and Data Breach Notifications (“Guidance”). The Guidance updates a non-binding, end-to-end framework for data users to tackle data breaches, including recommended elements that go into a data breach response plan, questions that need to be addressed in the course of investigating a data breach incident, how to make a data breach notification and tips for preventing recurrence of data breaches.

On 6 July 2023, the Insurance (Amendment) Ordinance 2023 was enacted by the Legislative Council which provides the legal basis for the implementation of the risk-based capital (RBC) regime for the insurance industry in Hong Kong.
The RBC regime is targeted for implementation in 2024. Prior to its implementation, it is expected that the Insurance Authority of Hong Kong will further consult the insurance industry on the detailed rules and technical requirements of the RBC
regime. Based on the conclusions of the consultation, it is expected that new subsidiary legislation(s) will be promulgated to set out the detailed rules and technical requirements of the RBC regime.

Cyber fraud continues to pose a significant threat to businesses and individuals in Hong Kong and elsewhere around the world. According to the official statistics for Hong Kong, 2022 saw a significant increase of deception cases of over 8,000 cases, over 70% of which were Internet-related. The Hong Kong Police has developed a ‘No Consent Regime’, which encompassed a practice of issuing so-called ‘Letters of No Consent’ to banks for accounts which contain suspected proceeds of crime, thereby triggering informal bank freezes on these accounts.

On 28 April 2023, the Occupational Safety and Occupational Health Legislation (Miscellaneous Amendments) Ordinance 2023 took effect upon gazettal. Employers who breach the statutory occupational safety and health requirements in Hong Kong will now be subject to significantly higher fines and imprisonment for up to two years.