The Securities & Futures Commission and Hong Kong Exchanges & Clearing have streamlined admission procedures for exchange participants and the registration and approval of staff and substantial shareholders.

The changes will cut exchange participants' workload in submitting documents and eliminate duplication of the two bodies' work.

The new arrangements include:

* applicants for exchange participation will no longer be required to provide HKEx with certified copies of documents submitted to the SFC;

* any substantial shareholder of an exchange participant approved by the SFC will be automatically registered by HKEx;

* all licensed representatives of an exchange participant who have been approved by the SFC as responsible officers in relation to regulated activities will be automatically registered with HKEx; and,

* exchange participants' employees using HKEx's trading devices will no longer need to be registered with the body.

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