Investor Presentaiton
Implications for US Managers Marketing Private Funds
to Investors in Hong Kong & Mainland China
• General Regulatory Framework - SFC in Hong Kong
The SFC's Licensing Information Booklet is a comprehensive guide to the requirements. This
structure is helpful for U.S. managers in that any Hong Kong-based subsidiary can adopt pre-existing
U.S. policies and procedures and by doing so meet or exceed the requirements found in the Code of
Conduct with only minor modifications in most cases.
Hong Kong requires managers undertaking regulated activities, including investment management,
to register as Hong Kong registered advisers and their advisory staff must meet appropriate criteria
in order to run a management company in Hong Kong. This will in most cases result in some of the
senior staff needing to sit for the Hong Kong licensing examinations in order to be eligible to manage
the subsidiary office in Hong Kong.
The SFC has published guidance on applicable exemptions/relaxations for managers who wish to set
up a research/advisory only office or who are otherwise linked to a foreign parent through a group
structure.
An alternative to forming a Hong Kong subsidiary company to operate in Hong Kong would be to
form a Hong Kong "branch office" of a foreign company.
Morgan Lewis
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