Hong Kong Watch, a UK-based human rights organization, released a report on June 11 warning that investors face significant risks of exposure to human rights violations via the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. The report found a concerning number of U.S. sanctioned entities from mainland China have securities available for purchase by foreign investors in Hong Kong, raising concerns about complicity with the Chinese Communist Party’s human rights abuses.
The report, titled “Risky Business: How Sanctioned Entities Access Capital via Hong Kong,” analyzes recent regulatory and policy changes that incentivized mainland Chinese entities to list in Hong Kong instead of other offshore markets with stricter due diligence standards, such as the New York Stock Exchange.