Various financial issues of mutual concern, including cross-border renminbi business, banking, securities and insurance were deliberated on by the representatives of governments, financial regulators, and exchanges of Hong Kong and Shanghai, in the fourth working meeting of Hong Kong-Shanghai Financial Co-operation held in Shanghai on Thursday.
In order to boost financial product cooperation, both agreed to encourage Hong Kong subsidiaries of Shanghai financial institutions to participate in the RMB Qualified Foreign Institutional Investor (RQFII) scheme and the Qualified Foreign Institutional Investors (QFII) programme, and also to launch more diversified investment products, with a view to expand the asset management business.
A bilateral agreement was also reached on encouraging financial institutions in the securities sector to set up branches in Hong Kong.
On insurance, both sides decided to boost co-operation in cross-border RMB reinsurance and encourage the development of Hong Kong's RMB insurance business, thereby fostering cross-border RMB reinsurance business between the two cities.
In 2010, the Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau of Hong Kong and the Shanghai Municipal Government Financial Services Office had signed a memorandum of understanding concerning advancing Hong Kong-Shanghai Financial Cooperation.
Financial representatives of the two countries hold bilateral meetings regularly with a view to improving mutual dialogue and exchanges. The first three working meetings were held in July 2010, January 2012 and March 2013.
