Hong Kong family offices plan more crypto, private markets exposure
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Hong Kong has sought to encourage more wealthy individuals and their families to anchor their investments in the city as it aims to be the link between mainland China and global markets.
PHOTO: REUTERS
- Hong Kong family offices plan to increase investments in private equity and digital assets in the next three years.
- Hong Kong aims to attract wealthy families, with single-family offices rising 25% to 3,384 in 2024.
- Hong Kong is easing crypto rules to boost digital asset trading, but activity remains muted compared to the US.
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HONG KONG – Many Hong Kong-based family offices are planning to add exposure to private equity and digital assets over the next three years, according to a report commissioned by the local authorities.
Interest from wealthy families in those assets, alongside private credit and venture capital, is expected to “rise notably”, the Hong Kong Institute for Monetary and Financial Research (HKIMR) wrote on March 10.
Hong Kong has sought to encourage more wealthy individuals and their families to anchor their investments in the city as it aims to be the link between mainland China and global markets.
The number of single-family offices based in the financial hub rose to 3,384 by the end of 2025, a 25 per cent increase from 2023, according to a Deloitte survey commissioned by the Hong Kong government released in February.
The digital asset market is “growing, but still at an early stage”, Mr Giorgio Valente, head of the HKIMR, said at a briefing on March 10.
“Many long-term investors, including family offices, are watching this space and reassessing their positioning.”
The report is based on a survey of 101 entities, including single and multiple family offices, between October 2024 and April 2025. About 44 per cent managed at least US$1 billion (S$1.27 billion). Their wealth mostly originated from Hong Kong, mainland China and other parts of Asia.
In line with demands from wealthy investors, Hong Kong’s government has been easing some rules to encourage crypto trading activity.
In 2025, the city’s Securities and Futures Commission began licensing platforms that would be allowed to connect local entities with their global order books.
As part of a three-year push to boost digital assets trading since 2022, the former British colony established a licensing regime for crypto platforms, listed exchange-traded products that track Bitcoin and Ether and began to oversee digital-asset funds.
Still, crypto activity remains relatively muted compared with hubs such as the US, where President Donald Trump has embraced the industry.
Mr Valente said: “While the exact magnitude of those investments remains uncertain, the direction of travel is clear – there’s rising structural interest in this area, and we expect that to deepen over time.” BLOOMBERG
