The Government announced today (January 17) that the Chief Executive has appointed Dr Louisa Lee Yee-sum, Mr Tommy Tam Kwong-shun, Mr Ng Hi-on and Mr Ricky Tse Kam-shan as members of the Travel Industry Authority (TIA) fro… read more
The following is issued on behalf of the Sir David Trench Fund Committee:
The Sir David Trench Fund Committee is inviting eligible organisations to apply for projects funded by the Main Fund of the Sir David Trench Fund for Recreation for 2025-26.
The Fund is to be used for the provision of facilities and purchase of equipment for projects in the furtherance of the objectives of the Fund. In keeping with the donor’s wishes, emphasis is placed on encouraging the purposeful use of leisure by young people.
Three categories of grants are available under the Fund. Details are as follows:
| Type of project | Funding scope | Amount of grant per application | Application deadline |
| Non-Capital Works Project | Purchase of sports and recreational equipment for collective use |
Between $2,000 and $90,000 | March 31, 2025 |
| Capital Works Project | Building of new recreational facilities |
The grant ceiling is $700,000 | March 31, 2025 |
| Special Project | Construction and improvement of sports facilities as well as procurement of sports equipment for promotion of sports development in Hong Kong | Between $700,000 and $4,000,000 | March 31, 2025 (first batch), and August 29, 2025 (second batch) |
The Transport Department (TD) published a Gazette notice today (January 17) to invite applications for passenger service licences for the operation of three packages of public light bus (scheduled) routes (green minibus ro… read more
According to the statistics released by the Companies Registry today (January 17), a total of 145,053 local companies were newly registered in 2024. By the end of 2024, the total number of local companies registered under the Companies Ordinance was 1,460,494, increasing by 29,736 compared to 2023, which was an all-time high figure.
In 2024, 1,079 non-Hong Kong companies that have newly established a place of business in Hong Kong were registered under the Companies Ordinance. By the end of 2024, the total number of registered non-Hong Kong companies was 15,126, up 2 per cent compared to 2023, which was also an all-time high figure.
During the year, the Government took forward two legislative amendment exercises to enhance the Companies Ordinance. The first exercise aims at enabling listed companies incorporated in Hong Kong to hold shares bought back in the treasury and dispose of them, and promoting paperless corporate communication for both listed and unlisted Hong Kong companies. On January 8, 2025, the Legislative Council passed the relevant Companies (Amendment) Bill 2024. To allow sufficient time for companies to make preparations, the new arrangements will come into effect three months after the amendment ordinance is published in the Gazette. The second exercise aims at introducing a company re-domiciliation regime to enable non-Hong Kong-incorporated companies to re-domicile to Hong Kong while maintaining their legal identities as a body corporate and ensuring business continuity without the need to go through complicated and costly judicial procedures. The relevant Companies (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2024 was introduced into the Legislative Council for the First Reading on January 8, 2025.
In 2024, the number of charges on properties of companies received for registration was 12,137, which was 1.87 per cent down from 12,368 in 2023. The number of notifications of payments and releases received for registration increased by 3.13 per cent, from 17,648 in 2023 to 18,201 in 2024.
In 2024, a total of 157 prospectuses were registered while the figure recorded in 2023 was 134.
In 2024, the total number of documents delivered for registration increased by 4.75 per cent to 3,139,906, compared to 2,997,459 in 2023.
In 2024, a total of 5,194,865 searches of document image records were conducted using the Registry’s electronic search services, an increase of 5.47 per cent from 4,925,332 in 2023.
On the registration of limited partnership funds (LPFs), a total of 292 LPFs were newly registered in 2024. By the end of 2024, the total number of LPFs was 997, increasing by 35.28 per cent compared to the end of 2023.
For open-ended fund companies (OFCs), 231 OFCs were newly incorporated in 2024. By the end of 2024, the total number of OFCs was 472, increasing by 93.44 per cent compared to the end of 2023.
As regards the licensing of trust or company service providers under the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing Ordinance, a total of 798 new licences were granted by the Registry in 2024. By the end of 2024, the total number of licensees was 6,817.
Turning to the licensing of money lenders, 138 new licences were granted by the Licensing Court in 2024. By the end of 2024, the total number of licensed money lenders was 2,110.
For details of the statistics, please visit the “Statistics” section of the Registry’s website (www.cr.gov.hk). read more
Attention TV/radio announcers: Please broadcast the following as soon as possible: Here is an item of interest to swimmers. The Leisure and Cultural Services Department announced toda… read more