Many prominent Indonesian enterprises are actively considering setting up family offices in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, according to the Indonesian Employers’ Association (APINDO).
Members of the first business delegation organized by the association to visit Hong Kong met with Chief Executive John Lee ka-chiu on Wednesday to learn more about the city’s business and investment environment.
“The Indonesian business community is generally optimistic about the investment environment in Hong Kong and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and hopes to strengthen economic and trade relations between Hong Kong and Indonesia,” association chairperson Shinta Kamdani said after the meeting with Lee.
“I am glad to learn that the authorities are making it convenient for Indonesian companies to operate in Hong Kong and on the Chinese mainland, and helping them to establish ties with businesses in the region. Likewise, Indonesia will open its doors to Hong Kong enterprises in Indonesia,” she said.
According to Kamdani, many wealthy family groups in Indonesia aim to establish family offices in Hong Kong. It is understood that many members of the visiting Indonesian delegation are representatives of various family consortia.
Indonesian enterprises have set their sights on Hong Kong as the gateway to the GBA market, and are interested in about 20 business sectors, including advanced technology, artificial intelligence, e-commerce and logistics.
Kamdani stressed that many members of her delegation have expressed interest in high-tech and artificial intelligence projects and hope to bring such technologies back to Indonesia by cooperating with Hong Kong.
When asked whether she thought Hong Kong’s newly enacted Safeguarding National Security Ordinance would affect Indonesian companies’ willingness to invest in the SAR, Kamdani said she believes the legislation will, in fact, make the city more stable, and the Indonesian business community will have greater confidence in Hong Kong.
The delegation will visit the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, InvestHK and major local banks after which it will proceed to Shenzhen to visit prominent mainland companies, such as Huawei, Tencent Holdings and BYD.
Kennedy Wong Ying-ho, who represents the import and export sector in the Legislative Council, said: “The delegation’s visit shows the importance the Indonesian business community attaches to Hong Kong. As Indonesia has huge economic development potential in Southeast Asia, Hong Kong offers plenty of room for mutual collaboration with Indonesia.”
With a history of 72 years, APINDO is one of Indonesia’s major industrial and commercial groups. With its headquarters in Jakarta, the organization is led by respective provincial committees in each of the country’s 26 provinces, and at the regional level by 173 district committees.
