Springboard to the world: Financial Secretary John Tsang invites Mainland firms to make use of Hong Kong as a platform to go global.

Hong Kong offers Mainland companies a range of financial services and capital-raising options underpinned by its status as a transparent, stable and international financial centre, Financial Secretary John Tsang says.

Speaking at the Hong Kong - Your Platform to Go Global forum in Xiamen today, Mr Tsang said: "We have a solid track record of companies, large and small, benefiting from our financial services. We are here today to offer practical advice on the issues, opportunities and procedures."

Director-General of Investment Promotion Mike Rowse said his department has helped 28 Mainland companies to establish or expand operations in Hong Kong this year.

"And by year's end, we expect to top the record of 41 achieved in 2006," he added.

More than 60 companies from Fujian are already using Hong Kong to raise capital, identify international business partners, upgrade their management skills and test their products and services in a fully-blown market economy and cosmopolitan environment.

During the past decades, interest in Hong Kong from Fujian has risen considerably. According to local government statistics, investment from the 105 Fujian firms with a presence in Hong Kong totaled US$253 million, or 33% of the province's total foreign direct investment as of June. Of these, 17 companies have invested more than US$4.5 million dollars since the beginning of the year.