Press Releases

Number of companies registered approaches 1.3 million

The total number of local companies registered under the Companies Ordinance was 1,288,666 at the end of 2015, up 15,973 from the corresponding figure at the end of 2014, according to the statistics released by the Companies Registry today (January 10).

In 2015, a total of 139,209 local companies were newly registered with the Companies Registry, among which 35,448 were incorporated online at the e-Registry ( www.eregistry.gov.hk) via the one-stop electronic company incorporation and business registration service.

The Registrar of Companies, Ms Ada Chung, said, "The Registry launched a full-scale electronic filing service covering all specified forms on March 3, 2015. The electronic service not only facilitates the reporting and disclosure of company information but also enhances the efficiency of filing for companies.

"We are also glad to note that a daily average of over 9,000 searches was conducted through the Company Search Mobile Service ( www.mobile-cr.gov.hk)."

Regarding the new Companies Ordinance, Ms Chung pointed out that since the implementation of the new law on March 3, 2014, Hong Kong's position as an international financial and commercial centre has been further reinforced.

According to World Bank's Doing Business 2016 report, Hong Kong has sustained its top position as the first in "protecting minority investors" among 189 economies. The World Bank commended Hong Kong for introducing requirements for directors to provide more detailed disclosure of conflicts of interest under the new Companies Ordinance. Hong Kong's ranking in "starting a business" has gone up four places to fourth internationally with the removal of the mandatory requirement of having a common seal.

In 2015, 894 non-Hong Kong companies that have newly established a place of business in Hong Kong were registered under the Companies Ordinance, an increase of 10.23 per cent from 811 in 2014. The total number of registered non-Hong Kong companies reached 10,029 by the end of 2015, up 4.21 per cent year on year.

The number of charges on assets of companies received for registration in 2015 was 20,470, 5.5 per cent down from 21,662 in 2014. The number of notifications of payments and releases received for registration increased by 8.56 per cent, from 21,389 in 2014 to 23,220 in 2015.

In 2015, a total of 246 prospectuses was registered, an increase of 2.93 per cent from 239 in 2014.

The total number of documents received for registration last year increased from 2,624,123 to 2,625,056.

A total of 3,914,633 searches of document image records were conducted using the Registry's electronic search services in 2015, an increase of 6.57 per cent from 3,673,185 in 2014.

For details of the statistics, please visit the "Statistics" section of the Companies Registry's website ( www.cr.gov.hk).