A view of Hong Kong Photo: VCG

A number of wealthy families plan to set up investment management offices in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), due to the city's impressive economic recovery and its vitality and charm, a trend that will help develop it into a global art auction and trading center, HKSAR Financial Secretary Paul Chan wrote in his blog on Sunday.

The city recently kicked off its Wealth for Good in Hong Kong Summit, as part of efforts to attract private companies and wealthy families to set up offices in Hong Kong to manage their investments.

The forum attracted more than 400 participants from more than 100 of the world's leading family decision makers, as well as senior family office executives, Chan said.

As an international financial center, Hong Kong has robust, orderly, secure and stable financial markets. Together with its world-class financial infrastructure, diversified and efficient capital markets, and the advantage under the One Country, Two Systems principle, the business and investment needs of family offices are well met, Chan said.

"Their investments are not limited to financial products but often include art and culture. We believe that attracting more family offices to Hong Kong will help develop the city into a global art auction and trading center," Chan said.

Hong Kong has announced measures to attract these offices to the city, including the creation of art storage facilities at Hong Kong's airport.

Different types of professional services make Hong Kong a meeting place for the Chinese mainland and international capital in terms of culture and art, with auction houses expecting better sales this year.

It is hoped that through various measures, at least 200 family offices will be attracted to Hong Kong by 2025, media reports said, citing Hong Kong Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury Christopher Hui.

A comprehensive set of policy measures is now in place tailored to the holistic and unique needs of family wealth owners, Hui said.

With the end of COVID-19, markets for Chinese traditional paintings and works of art may get a  lift, according to a report sent by Sotheby's to the Global Times on Monday.

Sales of Chinese art in the first half of 2022 totaled $63.4 million, and sales rose to $104 million in the second half, the report said, citing data from major international auction houses.

Sotheby's Hong Kong is about to kick off its 2023 Spring Sale Series-Chinese Works of Art Auction on April 8, with a combined estimate in excess of HK$800 million ($102 million), one of the highest for a Chinese works of art sale series in Sotheby's history.

Last year was a remarkable one for Chinese art at Sotheby's with sales reaching HK$2.4 billion across Chinese works of art, classical Chinese paintings and fine Chinese paintings, leading the market for the 13th consecutive year.  

"We are excited… and look forward to achieving more record-breaking results," Xibo Wang, head of Chinese ceramics and works of art at Sotheby's said in a statement sent to the Global Times.