The Chief Executive, Mr John Lee, today (August 2) met with the Chairman of the China Securities Regulatory Commission, Mr Wu Qing, at Government House to exchange views on deepening the mutual access between Hong Kong and Mainland financial markets. The Financial Secretary, Mr Paul Chan; the Acting Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, Mr Joseph Chan; the Chairman of the Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong (SFC), Dr Kelvin Wong; and the Chief Executive Officer of the SFC, Ms Julia Leung, also attended the meeting.
      
     Mr Lee welcomed Mr Wu and his delegation to Hong Kong. He said that Hong Kong enjoys unique advantages of having strong support of the motherland and being closely connected to the world under the "one country, two systems" principle, and possesses a highly internationalised market environment and mature financial infrastructure. The National 15th Five-Year Plan supports Hong Kong in consolidating and enhancing its status as an international financial centre, strengthening its functions as a global offshore Renminbi (RMB) business hub, an international asset and wealth management centre, and an international risk management centre. The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government is pressing ahead at full speed with the preparation of Hong Kong's First Five-Year Plan, and is fully committed to its formulation to proactively seize the opportunities brought by the development of the country, continuously advance the high-quality development of Hong Kong as an international financial centre, and support the high-level opening up of the Mainland's financial markets.
      
     Mr Lee said that global demand for RMB in trade finance, investment and reserves is steadily rising. Hong Kong, as a hub for global offshore RMB transactions and financial activities, with the world's largest offshore pool of RMB funds, has been actively advancing the upgrading of its financial infrastructure, product innovation and market expansion in various key areas. He was pleased to note that the launch of Mainland government bond futures in Hong Kong tomorrow (August 3) provides an effective offshore risk management tool for investors, and helps attract international investors to participate in the Mainland bond market and to hold RMB treasury bonds on a long-term basis. This is a key step in enhancing the RMB product ecosystem, and further consolidates Hong Kong's status as the world's offshore RMB business hub. Mr Lee thanked the Central People's Government and relevant Mainland regulators for their continued support, and said that he looked forward to further deepening co-operation with the Mainland and enhancing the liquidity of offshore RMB to facilitate the prudent and solid advancement of the RMB's internationalisation.
      
     Mr Lee said that the HKSAR Government will continue to work closely with Mainland regulators to jointly implement pragmatic measures to deepen co-operation between the two markets. Hong Kong will continue to expand the mutual access between Hong Kong and Mainland financial markets, building on the existing foundations of Stock Connect, Bond Connect and Cross-boundary Wealth Management Connect, to offer a wide range of investment and risk management products to the market. Hong Kong and the Mainland will achieve complementary advantages and promote synergistic development and product innovation in the financial markets to contribute to the development of the country as a financial powerhouse. 

Ends/Sunday, August 2, 2026
Issued at HKT 20:07

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