Hong Kong Hosts Record 11,070 Foreign-Parented Companies in 2025

Hong Kong counted a record 11,070 companies with parent firms outside the city in 2025, up 11% in a year, including 1,550 with U.S. parents, according to government figures. Boston Consulting Group's latest Global Wealth Report found that Hong Kong has also overtaken Switzerland as the world's largest cross-border wealth hub.

Those numbers frame a practical guide from a contributor writing in Entrepreneur, whose family has done business in Hong Kong for four generations. His argument is blunt: Western companies that fail in the city are rarely let down by the numbers. "More often, they arrive with the wrong assumptions about how business works here," he writes.

Why do relationships come before contracts?

Hong Kong has an excellent legal system and contracts are taken seriously, the author writes. But a contract is usually the last step, not the first. In his account, most successful deals began with an introduction from someone both sides trusted, followed by several meals and conversations before anyone discussed terms.

Western founders sometimes see this pace as slow. He calls it "due diligence done in person." His advice: get a respected local to introduce you, and follow up in person rather than relying on email. "Trust takes a long time to build and surprisingly little time to lose, so it pays to invest in it early," he writes.

Who really makes the decision?

Many of Hong Kong's best-known companies are still controlled by families, and the person across the table is not always the decision-maker. In some firms, a senior family member or a small inner circle decides quietly before the formal meeting takes place.

The author's own family brought in outside professionals to run the company rather than rely on family members, and he says many local families have done the same. Ownership and influence, though, often stay with the family. His tip: ask early how decisions get made. It can save months.

Generation matters too. Many younger family members were educated overseas and are open to new partners, but "will usually still want the senior generation's blessing before they commit," he writes.

Is Hong Kong the same as mainland China?

No. Hong Kong runs on common law, its currency is freely convertible, capital moves in and out freely, and English is an official language. That ease of setup cuts both ways: the number of companies with mainland Chinese parents rose 18% last year to 3,090.

The laws, regulations and ways of working differ from the mainland. If the mainland or the wider Greater Bay Area is part of the plan, the author says, hire people who understand both systems and ideally speak Cantonese and Mandarin as well as English.

He also points to InvestHK, the government's investment promotion agency. It helped a record 560 companies set up or expand in the city in 2025, and its advice is free.

What does it cost to operate there?

Hong Kong is not cheap. CBRE reports that office rents in Central have risen nearly 16% so far this year. In AmCham Hong Kong's 2026 survey, 71% of members said the high cost of living was putting off foreign talent.

The author's answer is to hire and train local people instead of relying on expensive expatriate packages. He has spent 30 years funding education and argues the talent pool is growing: government schemes including the Top Talent Pass have approved more than 410,000 applications, according to figures given to the Legislative Council earlier this year. In his experience, companies that invest in their Hong Kong team stay longer and do better.

Why think in decades, not quarters?

Hong Kong rewards those who stay, the author writes. He watched the city written off during the Asian financial crisis, the SARS outbreak and the pandemic, and each time the businesses that kept investing were well placed for the recovery. Local partners notice who stays and they remember.

If a company must scale back, he says, explain why and keep in touch. In AmCham's latest survey, 92% of members said they had no plans to move their headquarters out of the city. His closing message: success in Hong Kong depends as much on the relationships you build, and how long you stay, as on the business plan itself.