Number of local registered companies hits 1.3m in 1H17

There were 80,533 newly registered firms.

The total number of local companies registered reached 1,372,303 at the end of June, up by 31,080 on the end of 2016, the Companies Registry announced.

The total number of local companies newly registered in the first half of 2017 was 80,533, among which 23,691 companies were incorporated online using the e-Registry.

The Government gazetted two amendment bills last month to enhance Hong Kong’s regulatory regime for combating money laundering and terrorist financing

Registrar of Companies Ada Chung said under the bills, designated non-financial businesses and professions must meet statutory customer due diligence and record-keeping requirements when they engage in specified transactions, and companies incorporated in Hong Kong must maintain beneficial ownership information.

For non-Hong Kong companies that have established a place of business in Hong Kong, 462 were newly registered in the first half of 2017, compared to 408 in the second half of last year.

The total number of registered non-Hong Kong companies reached 10,190 by the end of July.