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Why Hong Kong’s strategic advantages attract global talent
In partnership with:Hong Kong Talent Engage4-MIN READ4-MIN Listen
Morning Studio editorsPublished: 12:00pm, 13 Aug 2026
A city’s ability to not only attract, but also retain high-calibre talent, plays an important role in the economic and policy development of governments around the world.
Hong Kong has gained international recognition for its efforts in establishing itself as a world-class talent hub, with the city placed fourth globally last year – up from ninth in 2024 – and No 1 in Asia in the International Institute for Management Development’s World Talent Ranking 2025. Cities are assessed on: investment and development, in areas such as education and health; appeal, including the cost of living and quality of life; and readiness, in terms of producing suitable employees with the right skill sets.
The Hong Kong government said this result reflected the effectiveness of its policies involving education, innovation, technology and talent admission. Since 2022, the city has rolled out a series of admission measures to attract professionals from around the world, which up to the end of this June had led to over 300,000 global talent moving to Hong Kong to develop their careers, according to the latest government statistics.
One of these measures is the Top Talent Pass Scheme (TTPS), which was introduced in December 2022 to attract high-income professionals and top-tier university graduates to live and work in the city. Up to the end of this June, it had received over 171,000 applications with more than 138,000 of them approved.
In 2023, the government also established Hong Kong Talent Engage, an office under the Labour and Welfare Bureau, to promote the city’s advantages and talent admission schemes around the world while helping incoming talent to settle and integrate into life in Hong Kong.
Hong Kong and Singapore were the only two destinations that married couple Robert Lay and Emma Li considered when they decided to leave Auckland, in New Zealand, with their young son and daughter and relocate to Asia.
Lay, who was born in Cambodia, and Li, who is originally from Guangzhou, in southern China, met and later married in New Zealand, where they had both gone to study, after staying there to work in the banking and financial services industry.
They ultimately chose to move to Hong Kong in mid-2023, with their son, now aged eight, and daughter, now six, citing its good international education system and proximity to mainland China as major factors.
The launch of the TTPS around the time of their decision for relocation also made it much easier for them to apply for a visa. They were impressed that approval of their application came just days after submitting the necessary documentation.
Lay says the scheme provided them with great flexibility and confidence – because they were able to first relocate and get settled in the city with their young family before looking for work to reset their careers.
“The TTPS visa gives us the right to study, work and even open our own business in Hong Kong,” he says. “You can settle down first, and then look for a job later.”
That flexibility, and the huge scale of Hong Kong – as an international finance centre with an extensive and diverse job market – enabled both him and his wife to pivot away from jobs in traditional banking.
Lay is now the chief financial officer and head of international capital of the Chinese multinational enterprise Kasen Group, where he works mainly on capital markets projects and listing preparations linked to Cambodia.
He says the scale and nature of the cross-border deals he has worked on since arriving in Hong Kong have been an eye-opening experience. “The move has definitely broadened my career horizons,” he says. “Hong Kong, with its access to mainland China and other parts of Asia, gives me the opportunity to work with – and learn from – high-calibre professionals from different parts of the world.”
Li works as the director of asset management at Giga Hong Kong, a firm that provides investment strategies for family offices and high-net-worth clients – a sector far more developed in Hong Kong than in New Zealand.
She says her career has also experienced a similar upward shift as her husband’s. Working with Hong Kong family offices has given her exposure to a wider range of investment opportunities and a more international client base.
“Investment strategy has always been a passion of mine,” she says. “Hong Kong has a lot more variety of investments that can be offered because of its advantage as a bridge between mainland China and the rest of the world.
“I have more exposure to private equity opportunities with clients in [southern China’s] Greater Bay Area and Southeast Asia, which is something that wouldn’t have been possible back in New Zealand.”
However, their decision to relocate to Hong Kong was based not only on work, but also on the future education of their children and the quality of their family life.
The children now attend one of the city’s many high-quality international schools. Lay and Li say the opportunity for the youngsters to be in a place where they can learn Chinese and experience a rich Chinese culture, and which offers a curriculum that encourages students to be creative and develop critical thinking and problem-solving skills, is a major advantage.
Yet the move to Hong Kong was not without its challenges for the family. It took time for them to adapt to living in a much smaller flat in Hong Kong than the spacious house they had in New Zealand. Li also had to delay her return to work after their arrival because finding a domestic helper to help look after the children took them longer than expected.
However, the trade-off quickly became clear – along with the benefits offered by their new home. Hong Kong offers immediate access to a compact, well-connected region, with direct links to cities across mainland China and Asia.
Long weekends and long school holidays mean the family can often take short trips in and around Asia, which the couple believe are an important part of their children’s education. Hong Kong’s location also means they can easily visit members of their extended family in southern China and Cambodia after a short train ride or flight.
The couple, who have successfully renewed their TTPS visas and continue to enjoy their life in Hong Kong, regard the city as the family’s long-term base. They are also keen to further develop their experience in providing investment advice to family offices and expand their regional investment connections.
Lay has simple advice for other potential TTPS applicants. “Be open to a lot of possibilities, because there are many in Hong Kong,” he says. “It’s a great place for building networks and for people to prosper.”
Visit Hong Kong Talent Engage’s website to learn more about the city’s talent schemes.AdvertisementAdvertisementSelect VoiceSelect Speed00:0000:001.00x