Jersey companies have been formally approved for listings on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.

The development comes after more than a year’s negotiation, research and document preparation involving government officials in Jersey, representatives from Jersey Finance and the finance industry. Jersey has been approved for listings ahead of some of its closest competitors, including Guernsey and the Isle of Man.

Frances Woo, managing partner of Appleby in Hong Kong, says that Jersey’s admission is both timely and vindication of the robustness and efficacy of Jersey law.“We think that the move is a significant development for Jersey’s finance industry, which is seeking to increase business flows from the Asia Pacific region,” she said. “The approval enables Jersey’s finance industry to compete on an equal footing with other competitor jurisdictions, which have been established longer in Asia... it also adds weight to Jersey’s reputation as a rigorously supervised, highly regarded jurisdiction and also demonstrates how the market in Asia views the quality and robustness of Jersey company law.”

Offshore law firm Carey Olsen together with Hong Kong-based Stephenson Harwood & Lo assisted Jersey Finance with the application for the floating of Jersey companies on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.
 
Jersey joins Bermuda and Cayman Islands as the only offshore jurisdictions formally approved for Hong Kong listings.

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