Hong Kong vs Singapore is no longer a friendly rivalry. Hong Kong is moving to scrap tax on fund managers’ biggest paydays, and it’s doing that just as its IPO boom and a rush of mainland Chinese money give it momentum it hasn’t had since before 2020.
Here’s what Hong Kong is changing, how Singapore stacks up, and why the two cities count wealth so differently that both can claim to be winning.
Key takeaways
- A Hong Kong bill gazetted on 12 June 2026 would widen the city’s 0% tax treatment of carried interest well beyond private equity, backdated to 1 April 2025.
- By the regulators’ own surveys, Hong Kong managed US$5.4 trillion at the end of 2025 and Singapore US$5.2 trillion (S$6.7 trillion).
- Deloitte counted 3,384 single family offices in Hong Kong at the end of 2025. Singapore says it has “more than 2,000”, but the two cities define a family office differently.
- Hong Kong raised HK$210.2 billion from IPOs in the first half of 2026, up 92% on a year earlier.
What is carried interest, and what is Hong Kong changing?
Carried interest, or “carry”, is the share of a fund’s profits that its managers keep, often around 20%. For senior private equity and hedge fund staff it can be worth far more than their salary. That makes how it’s taxed a big factor in where those people choose to live.
Hong Kong already has a carry break. Since 2021 it has exempted eligible carry, but only from private equity deals, only from funds certified by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, and only once the fund beats a “hurdle rate” (a minimum return it has to deliver to investors first).
The Inland Revenue (Amendment) Bill 2026 takes most of those limits away. According to a breakdown by law firm Charltons, it removes the certification and hurdle-rate tests, covers profits from a much wider range of fund deals, and extends the exemption to carry vehicles and personal investment entities.
The same bill would let funds and family offices hold more kinds of assets without losing their tax exemption, including digital assets, precious metals, private loans, overseas property and some commodities. A single-investor fund such as a pension fund could also qualify if it manages at least HK$240 million.
One catch: it isn’t law yet. An EY update dated 13 October 2026 still described the measures as proposals going through the Legislative Council.
Hong Kong vs Singapore: who is actually ahead?
It depends what you measure. Each regulator runs its own annual survey, and the latest results came out about a month apart in mid-2026.
| Measure (end of 2025) | Hong Kong | Singapore |
|---|---|---|
| Assets under management | HK$42.2 trillion (US$5.4 trillion), up 20% | S$6.7 trillion (US$5.2 trillion), up 10% |
| Net inflows in 2025 | HK$2.1 trillion | S$376 billion |
| Single family offices | 3,384 (Deloitte estimate) | More than 2,000 (government figure) |
| Licensed or registered managers | 2,358 Type 9 asset management firms | 1,320 fund management companies |
Sources: the Securities and Futures Commission’s Asset and Wealth Management Activities Survey 2025, published on 3 July 2026, and the MAS Singapore Asset Management Survey 2025. The two surveys use different methods, so read the gap as “roughly level” rather than as a clear win for either city.
Growth is where they differ most. Hong Kong’s assets grew twice as fast as Singapore’s in 2025, and its net inflows almost tripled. Singapore is still adding money, just not at that pace.
Why is Chinese money drifting back to Hong Kong?
Some of the reasons have little to do with Hong Kong itself. On 8 October 2026 the Seoul Economic Daily, citing Nikkei Asia, described three things working against Singapore.
- Tougher checks. After a S$3 billion money-laundering case in August 2023, Singapore tightened source-of-funds checks. Approving a family office now reportedly takes more than a year.
- Beijing’s curbs. China has moved against illegal trading through offshore brokers and overhauled how it taxes offshore trusts, which makes parking wealth abroad less appealing.
- The IPO pull. Founders who list in Hong Kong end up with cash, bankers and lawyers all in one place.
That IPO pull is real. KPMG reported about HK$110 billion raised in the first quarter of 2026, which put Hong Kong at the top of the global IPO rankings, and HKEX’s half-year total reached HK$210.2 billion. If you followed the Elice IPO slide in Seoul, Hong Kong’s run looks even more striking.
Think of it as a train station. Once the trains (listings) start running often, the shops (banks, funds, family offices) open around the platforms.
Does Singapore still have an edge?
Yes. It has a reputation for political neutrality and predictable rules that wealthy families from India, Southeast Asia and the Middle East still value. And 76% of the money it manages comes from outside Singapore, so it isn’t relying on any single country.
Hong Kong’s China link works in both directions. China’s new rules on offshore trusts apply in Hong Kong too, and foreign investors keep a close eye on mainland policy, as the stalled foreign buying of China bonds shows. Our view: Hong Kong is winning on momentum and Singapore is still winning on trust.
What happens next
The carried interest bill still has to clear its committee stage and a final vote. If it passes, it applies to tax years starting on or after 1 April 2025. Hong Kong also aims to help at least 220 more family offices set up or expand in the city by 2028.
Singapore plans to cut the time it takes to open a bank account to under a month, down from more than six weeks. Expect more moves like that, aimed at speed rather than at headline tax rates.
FAQ
Is Hong Kong’s 0% carried interest tax already law?
No. A narrower 0% concession for private equity has existed since 2021. The wider version was gazetted on 12 June 2026 and was still before the Legislative Council in October 2026.
Which city manages more money, Hong Kong or Singapore?
Hong Kong reported US$5.4 trillion at the end of 2025 and Singapore US$5.2 trillion. Because the regulators measure differently, the two are roughly level.
Why do family offices care about carried interest rules?
Family offices hire investment professionals who are often paid partly in carry. Tax-free carry makes it easier to hire those people in Hong Kong, and the same bill widens what family offices can hold tax-free.
If the bill passes, watch whether fund managers start moving to Hong Kong. For more on Asia’s money flows, browse the Business section of Nerdlyst.
This article is for information only and is not investment advice.
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