Overview

As an international financial centre, Hong Kong attaches great importance to safeguarding the integrity of our financial systems by implementing international standards on anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing (“AML/CTF”) to deter and detect inward and outward flows of illicit funds. Hong Kong is an active member of international AML/CTF organisations, having been a member of the Financial Action Task Force (“FATF”) since 1991 and a founding member of the Asia/Pacific Group on Money Laundering since 1997.

A high level Central Coordinating Committee on Anti-Money Laundering and Counter Financing of Terrorism, chaired by the Financial Secretary, steers on the formulation of AML/CTF policies and the implementation of the AML/CTF regime. It comprises members from the relevant Government bureaux and departments, financial regulators and law enforcement agencies, which work together to take forward AML/CTF initiatives.

The Companies Registry is responsible, among other things, for the incorporation of companies and registration of statutory returns filed by companies, the administration of the provisions of the Companies Ordinance, the administration of the licensing regime for trust or company service providers (“TCSP”), processing of applications for and renewal of money lenders licences, and monitoring and ensuring the compliance of the TCSP licensees and licensed money lenders with the customer due diligence and record-keeping requirements under the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing Ordinance, Cap. 615.

Comprehensive information on Hong Kong’s AML/CTF regime, including the relevant legislation and publications, covering statements and guidelines published by the FATF, sanction lists published by the United Nations and guidelines issued by the Companies Registry etc., are available at this thematic section.