Hong Kong enterprises have stepped up their presence in Shenzhen's Qianhai special economic zone in the past five months, with the total number of Hong Kong companies registering in the zone reaching 736 as of Oct 25.

The enterprises include a number of leading industries in Hong Kong, such as the finance, modern logistics, and information and technology sectors.

Wang Jinxia, a spokesman for the Qianhai Authority, said the positive response from Hong Kong firms was "the outcome of our efforts since last year" and can be attributed to a range of factors.

"Some Hong Kong enterprises came to register in Qianhai following the launch of platform projects, like member companies of the Chinese Gold & Silver Exchange Society, which will set up a precious metal vault in the zone. Others were lured by the improvement in Qianhai's infrastructure construction," Wang told China Daily.

"With the increase in investment-themed events being held and the overall volume of enterprises registered in Qianhai, Hong Kong enterprises' interest in the Qianhai zone will rise," he said

Youth hub debut

Qianhai's Youth Innovation and Entrepreneur Hub, which provides a platform for Hong Kong's young entrepreneurs to set up their own businesses, is expected to make its debut on December 7. Preferential policies and the sound environment offered by the zone will attract a number of young entrepreneurs from the city, pushing the number of registrations higher.

"Young Hong Kongers' enthusiasm towards operating startups is quite high. More than one third of the entrepreneur teams will come from Hong Kong," Wang said.

Qianhai has organized 49 events in Hong Kong aimed at attracting investments so far this year, receiving 8,993 person-time Hong Kongers, according to an official of Qianhai Authority's investment promotion division.

In the first 10 months of this year, the number of Hong Kong enterprises registered in Qianhai rose by 575 - a roughly eight-fold year-on-year rise. The special economic zone received nearly 100 new company registrations from Hong Kong in the past month.

"Basically, there's no doubt that the number of Hong Kong enterprises will break the 1,000-mark by the end of this year," the official said.

Higher capital

Among the Hong Kong enterprises registered, more than 40 percent have investments exceeding $10 million. The average registered capital of Hong Kong firms reached 96.5 million yuan (HK$122.2 million) - 62 percent higher than the average figure on the whole.

Zhu Liangen of Shenzhen Tengbo International Business Co Ltd, said his company attracted nearly 30 enterprises from Hong Kong within a month since it became one of the zone's first group of partners in September. Most of them are financially innovative enterprises, such as financial leasing companies.

"Hong Kong enterprises are very cautious," he said. "They will spend a long time conducting preliminary surveys on the investment environment before choosing a place to settle down."

Zhu said Qianhai's popularity has increased significantly compared with last year.

sally@chinadailyhk.com

(HK Edition 11/06/2014 page8)