Opinion | Hong Kong is at its best when it is open to the world

The only way forward for Hong Kong is internationalisation – restoring and deepening financial, economic and sociocultural ties with countries, regions and cities across the world. This is instrumental to the city’s revitalisation, as it seeks to emerge from three years of turmoil, lockdowns and palpable angst over its future.

First, Hong Kong must see the “international community” as more than just select segments of the Global North. Powerful markets, including the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean), the Indian subcontinent and Latin America have in the past been overlooked.

That’s despite the fact Asean is the fifth-largest economy in the world (by total size), has a young, vibrant population with linguistic and cultural characteristics that overlap with those of Hong Kong, and is expected to play a significant role in balancing the US-China power struggle.

Businesses and investors from the Gulf States and BRICS nations have also long sought a reliable gateway with robust legal infrastructure to access mainland China.

As a common law jurisdiction with the potential to pioneer legal innovation – but also as a hub for finance, compliance and regulation, and regional commerce – Hong Kong should lower the barriers to market entry for high-net-worth individuals from emerging economies, while ensuring transparency and fairness in legal arbitration and mediation.