Hong Kong criticised for decline in corporate governance

The Hong Kong government displays an ambivalent attitude to corporate governance and is more concerned with the short-term expansion of its stock market, according to Jamie Allen, secretary-general of the Asian Corporate Governance Association ACGA.

“Much of the drive to boost listings is a reaction to competitive or perceived pressures from Shanghai,” he says.

Allen goes on to suggest that while much progress has been made in corporate governance over the past decade in Asia, the reform process has only reached the half-way mark in most markets.

“Governments and regulators need to be more consistent in their approach to reform and less influenced by short-term booms and busts,” he tells Asian...