A growing number of Arab companies are eying strategic opportunities in the technological innovation hubs of Hong Kong and the Chinese mainland, according to a regional trade chief.
In an exclusive interview with China Daily, Edwin Hitti, president of the Arab Chamber of Commerce and Industry, identified this shifting trend among Arab investors who previously gravitated toward Western markets.
“Hong Kong has always been a safe haven for capital, for business, for people all over the world,” Hitti said. “More particularly now, it should be (a safe haven) for Arab companies and Arab individuals.”
As the CEO of the Hong Kong Islamic Index, the first Hong Kong benchmark to reflect Islamic investment principles, and the founder of Amwal Credit Union, the world’s first and Hong Kong’s sole Shariah-compliant financial institution, Hitti has long experience in facilitating Hong Kong’s efforts to attract Arab and Islamic capital.
“A lot of the announcements that were made by governments are very positive and very inviting,” he added, recognizing Hong Kong as a gateway between East and West that has a major role to play logistically, legally, financially, and commercially.
