Wealthy families and professionals are returning to Hong Kong, driven by competitive local tax incentives and rising geopolitical volatility abroad, according to BMP Wealth CEO Howard Clark-Burton

Speaking to Asian Private Banker, Clark-Burton highlighted the city’s recently gazetted tax bill as a decisive factor for asset managers escaping high-tax regimes in London and Singapore.

“Without a shadow of a doubt, it’s going to attract more business,” Clark-Burton said.

Clark-Burton is referring to the Inland Revenue (Amendment) (Preferential Tax Regimes for Funds, Family-owned Investment Holding Vehicles and Carried Interest) Bill 2026, which was gazetted on 12 June 2026.

Once passed, the bill will grant tax exemptions for investment funds and carried interest. Crucially, these tax concessions will apply retroactively from 1 April 2025. This will also make Hong Kong the first Asian financial hub to grant such a relief.

Clark-Burton’s comments also follow Hong Kong’s overtaking of Switzerland to become the number one cross-border wealth hub globally, according to the BCG Global Wealth Report 2026.

“There’s been about 25% growth in wealth for single-family offices in the last year or so. It’s all contributed to Hong Kong becoming number one in cross-border wealth,” Clark-Burton said.

Tax cuts attracting expats

Clark-Burton heads BMP Wealth, a Hong Kong-based independent wealth manager with US$250 million in assets under management (AUM) focused on U/HNW expatriates

The recent influx of people wanting to come to Hong Kong is in stark contrast to a few years ago, he said. “Hong Kong definitely made mistakes during Covid, and I think those caused a flight of expats.

“We had the protests in 2019, then the pandemic and National Security Law in 2020. A lot of people, including clients, left in 2022 and 2023. It was a tough time to set up a business,” he said.

The recently announced tax breaks are a big difference for fund managers considering leaving places like the United Kingdom or even Singapore for Hong Kong, Clark-Burton said.

“If a fund manager can earn a large portion of their income tax-free, compared to paying around 45% plus in London or about 24% in Singapore, where are they going to want to be? They’ll want to be here!” he said.

“Some of the bigger clients – quant traders and major firms in the market – also recognise this. It creates a large pool for top performers, especially those earning multi-million-dollar bonuses, where tax differences are significant. We’ll likely see a flow of both talent and capital into Hong Kong,” he added.

Complementary structures, including private fund structures, family office frameworks, and Hong Kong’s Capital Investment Entrant Scheme, he added, will also attract capital.

Gulf instability, European stagnation fuel inflows

Macro factors, such as the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, are also pushing wealthy families back to Hong Kong, Clark-Burton said.

Despite a short period of relative calm, missiles continue to be intercepted over Gulf states such as Kuwait, Bahrain, and Jordan. The US and Iran are currently stalled in talks.

“There has also been a move into Hong Kong from Dubai because of the war burnout. Particularly people with families, because they’re saying ‘even if the war stops, you never know,’” he said.

Rising interest rates in Europe, which do little to stimulate the economy, are also forcing wealthy families to look towards Hong Kong. “[Europe] is sort of strangling itself with a lot of regulations and laws, and raising its interest rates. They should be doing the opposite,” he said.

“Suddenly, there is an increase in inquiries now about coming to Hong Kong from other jurisdictions like the UK. There are push factors,” he added.

HK market depth outweighs SG stability

As UHNW Chinese individuals continue to sidestep Singapore as a booking centre due to account-opening delays and residency uncertainties, Clark-Burton views the city-state as complementary to Hong Kong, with its own strengths.

“Hong Kong gives access to China, with deep capital markets and access to a lot of wealth, whereas Singapore is predictable and attracts wealth from South and Southeast Asia,” he said.

BMP Wealth, which received a capital infusion from UK-based investment manager Marlborough Group in 2024, is also looking to expand its footprint in Singapore and double its AUM through an acquisition later this year, Clark-Burton revealed.

However, for now, the flow of talent and capital is still significantly in one direction. “There are not many people who could move to Singapore even if they wanted to, and I’ve seen a big trend over the last 18 months of people moving back from Singapore to Hong Kong.

“That’s largely due to the size of the IPO markets, so the bankers are coming back along with their ecosystem. Hong Kong is just bigger with deeper, massive market access,” he said.