On January 13, 2025, Hong Kong Trade Development Council and the Malaysia - Hong Kong Islamic Finance Roundtable, co-organized with the Malaysia International Islamic Financial Centre (MIFC) Leadership Council, was successfully held. This roundtable discussion is one of the activities of the 18th Asian Financial Forum, the meeting aimed to promote the development of cross-border financial activities between Hong Kong and Islamic economies represented by Malaysia.

The event brought together a host of industry elites and experts. Dr. Patrick Lau, Deputy Executive Director of the Hong Kong Trade Development Council; Tan Sri Andrew Sheng, Chairman of the MIFC Leadership Council; Hong Kong Consul General of Malaysia, Muzambli Markam; Mr. Francis Ho, JP Deputy Secretary of the Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region; Mr. Amirali B. Nasir, M.H., J.P., Chairman of the Islamic Finance Working Party of The Law Society of Hong Kong; Ms. Tiffany Tang, Chief Manager of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority; Mr. Mofiz Chan, Chairman of the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Professionals Association; Prof. Wong Chak Sham Michael, Associate Dean of the College of Business at City University of Hong Kong; Mr. Ali Ma, Director of TYC Finance; Datuk Ben Chan Wei-beng, Board Member of the Financial Services Development Council; Mr. Felino James Marcelo, Chief Executive Officer & Country Head of Maybank Greater China; Dr. Ayaz Ismail, Director of Islamic Wholesale Banking at CIMB Islamic Bank, Malaysia; and Mr. Yusry Yusoff, Chief Executive Officer of the Islamic Banking and Finance Institute Malaysia (IBFIM) attended the meeting.

Geopolitical and geo-economic shifts are reshaping the global economic landscape, influencing trade, investment, and financial strategies. For Hong Kong, navigating these changes requires exploring alternative regional collaborations to maintain its role as a global financial hub. ASEAN, as a thriving economic bloc, presents immense opportunities, particularly through Malaysia’s leadership as the ASEAN chair in 2025. Additionally, the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) markets are experiencing significant growth. Malaysia’s position as the global leader in Islamic finance provides a valuable framework for Hong Kong to diversify its financial instruments and deepen integration with ASEAN markets and the Islamic world.

This roundtable explored how Islamic finance, with its ethical foundations and instruments like sukuk, halal trade financing, and Shariah-compliant investments, can serve as a bridge between Hong Kong and ASEAN and the OIC markets. Participants also discussed leveraging Malaysia’s leadership to unlock cross-border opportunities in the halal economy, enhance sustainability initiatives, and foster long-term resilience through regional collaboration.

It is worth mentioning that this roundtable discussion is one of the activities of the 18th Asian Financial Forum, which, as a signature event of the 2025 International Financial Week (IFW), has also concluded successfully. The forum attracted over 3,600 policymakers and business leaders to leverage Hong Kong’s strengths as an international financial centre. The International Financial Week ran from January 13 to 17 and brought together more than 20 partner events to create synergies in the industry. These events covered many topics of global interest to the financial and business community, including private equity, family offices, net zero investing, and generative AI, among others. This week of events helped underscore the importance of Hong Kong as an international financial hub.