Submissions and Reports

The Chamber welcomes the Commission’s proposals to extend the Block Exemption for Vessel Sharing Agreements) Order 2017 (“the Order”). At the same time, we continue to advocate for the extension of the Order for five years, as well as the removal of the market share limit for vessel sharing agreements currently imposed under the Order.

The nature of the consultation, which concerns copyright owners and users, mean that the Chamber was unable to achieve unanimity when responding to some of the Government’s proposals to update Hong Kong’s existing copyright law. As such, the Chamber has called for a balanced approach that takes into account the rights of owners and users, while reflecting views from both perspectives on such proposals as adopting an exhaustive approach on copyright exceptions and introduction of a judicial site-blocking mechanism.

The Chamber supports the extension of the Competition (Block Exemption for Vessel Sharing Agreements) Order (“the Order”) in its current form for another term of five years. We believe that the existing Order and proposed period of extension will provide a stable and predictable regulatory environment for and in sustaining the competitiveness of Hong Kong’s shipping and logistics sector– a major pillar of our economy. We also continue to advocate for the removal of the market share limit for vessel sharing agreements currently imposed under the Order for the reasons set out in our response.

The Chamber believes that there are a number of fundamental issues which should be addressed before consideration is given to the issue of whether a Code of Practice for Third Party Funding of Mediation is needed. Should the decision be made to proceed with the implementation of such a code, we would suggest against the replication of contents of the existing code for arbitration given that there are fundamental differences between these two forms of alternative dispute resolution.

The Chamber welcomes the HKEX’s proposals to enhance its existing framework on corporate governance and related listing rules. At the same time, we recommend that such changes be implemented on an incremental and flexible basis, with consideration given to their potential costs and benefits for businesses, particularly with regard to the impact on small and medium sized issuers.

The Chamber welcomes the Government’s proposals regarding amendments to public access to personal information on the Companies Registry. At the same time, we recommend that the public be consulted on the scope of persons authorized to access protected information, and that the proposed timeline for implementation of the new measures be shortened.

The Chamber agrees with the HKEX that the existing listing requirements should be streamlined through the introduction of a common set of core shareholder protection standards (“Core Standards”) especially in respect of overseas issuers. The Chamber has also made a number of observations and recommendations on certain aspects of the Core Standards to facilitate issuer compliance, and enhance the city’s status as a place to list.

The Chamber agrees with the Government that there is the need to address the abuse of SIM Cards for criminal purposes, but suggests that consideration should also be given to attendant issues such as data privacy implications and efficacy of a mandatory registration system. In light of the social impact that such regulatory changes may bring, the Chamber recommends that efforts be made to better define the rights and responsibilities of stakeholders, namely, users, operators, and regulators under the proposed programme.

The Chamber agrees with the Law Reform Commission’s proposals to relax the current prohibition of outcome-related fee structures for arbitration to enhance Hong Kong’s competitiveness as an arbitration centre, but suggests that a phased approach be adopted to the implementation of flexible fee structures. Due consideration should also be given to the protection of the interests of smaller businesses opting for such a means of dispute resolution.

The Chamber does not agree with the HKEX’s proposal to increase the profit requirement for a Main Board listing mainly because such a requirement would not be in the interests of smaller businesses in particular those outside of the New Economy. Rather, a comprehensive review of the existing listing requirements for both the Growth Enterprise and Main Boards including those on the transfer from the former to the latter should be carried out to address any intrinsic inefficiencies and promote Hong Kong’s attractiveness as a place to list.