The government’s investment arm achieved a double-digit internal rate of return last year, greater than many newly established venture capital funds, according to its CEO.
“Many overseas funds have a J-curve performance, as they tend to suffer an initial loss before a gain,” said Clara Chan Ka-chai, CEO of Hong Kong Investment Corporation (HKIC). “But we have already bypassed the J-curve, as we have earned HK$2.3 billion [US$293 million] in 2024, while we have achieved a double-digit rate of return in 2025.”
The strong performance, which will be detailed in HKIC’s annual report next month, came from many of its 200 investment projects achieving their growth targets, Chan said in a meeting of the Legislative Council’s Financial Affairs Panel on Monday.
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Several lawmakers during the session expressed support for Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po’s plan, announced in his budget, to inject additional funding into HKIC, but also wanted more details.
Chan, who attended the meeting on Monday, said the government would disclose the size of the injection later, but he added that it would be needed soon as HKIC had already invested almost the entire sum it had on hand.
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Backed by the government’s reserves, HKIC was established in 2022 to boost the city’s economy and innovation industry. As of March, it managed HK$62 billion (US$8 billion) in government funds.
“The government reserves are now managed by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, which has done a great job to achieve a very good return,” Chan said. “But the HKMA investment is mainly in finance vehicles, while the HKIC investment promotes innovation and technology development in the city, which is important to the future economy of Hong Kong.”