Hong Kong to kick on with paperless stock market system in nod for environment

Hong Kong is preparing to turn the local stock market’s operations fully electronic and paperless from early next year, starting with a focus on turning stock ownership into scripless records, the city’s capital market regulator said.

The Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) would initiate the five-year reform process from as early as January next year, a spokesman said on Monday. It also launched an industry consultation to gather feedback until April 23 on fee caps for various electronic processes and online services.

The city’s 2,600-odd listed companies would be expected to go paperless in batches over the next five years, the SFC said. Individual investors would be given the option to keep their existing physical share certificates, or surrender them in favour of digital records, it added.

The removal of paper and manual processes would enhance efficiency for market participants, provide more opportunities for straight-through processing, and contribute to a greener market in line with global trends, the regulator said. The SFC would strongly encourage individual investors to consider the benefits of the paperless system, it added.

The SFC spokesman said the reform would benefit listed companies and private investors by facilitating better communications and corporate governance.