The Hong Kong market's strong bias towards mainland China has made Singapore a more global financial center, EC Holdings CEO Philippe May told finews.asia on the investment migration firm's choice to make the city-state its global headquarters.
Earlier this month, global investment migration firm EC Holdings commenced operations with the launch of its headquarters in Singapore. According to its chief executive Philippe May, zero-Covid restrictions in Hong Kong may have added to the decision but the city-state would have been the preferred choice nonetheless.
«Even pre-pandemic, we would rather set up a global head office in Singapore than Hong Kong,» said May, who was also the former APAC head of Arton Capital, in a recent conversation with finews.asia.
China Tilt
According to May, Hong Kong is very strongly tilted towards China but it lacks openness to a wider mix of countries compared to Singapore. Vietnam, for example, is a big market for EC Holdings but its citizens prefer the latter hub as they require visas to enter the former.
«Indians and people from Southeast Asia are much more tilted toward Singapore,» May said. «Singapore is more regional, even more global, than Hong Kong.»
Taiwan Risk
Nonetheless, China remains a major market and May notes that demand is increasing as geopolitical tensions rise.
«What our clients have in common are passports that are not very helpful for travel. They often live in countries with weak legal systems and, sometimes, autocratic rule or ethnic tensions,» he explained.
«Russia is a good example. They landed in this war and now the people face the music and pay the price for what has been decided at the political level. You can be sure 100 percent that once China gets involved in military conflict with Taiwan, even more severe restrictions are likely to be imposed by Western countries on mainland Chinese. So, you know, people take precautions.»
Top Three in a «Short Time»
Despite being newly established, EC Holdings aims to be a top three player worldwide «within a relatively short time» due to several competitive advantages including its shareholding structure which has no centralized ownership. The firm was formed through the merger of nine local firms worldwide with their respective licensed agents becoming equity partners, allowing for nimble and organic growth.
It also has a relatively unique offering with the coverage of locations like Latvia, the Bahamas, Vanuatu and certain South American countries. Competitors tend to avoid such countries, May said, due to various issues such as the need for a trusted local partner or lack of marketing.
«These are, in my opinion, underrated and undervalued programs,» he said.
Location Advantage
And perhaps its greatest competitive advantage, according to May, is its choice of selecting a base located at the source of migrants rather than the destination.
«We want to be located at the source where the people come from and that is mainly in Asia. Countries such as China, India, Indonesia or the Philippines have huge demand for immigration solutions and we want to be close to them,» May explained.
EC Holdings currently already covers key markets in Southeast Asia, Africa and Europe. Its next major targets are South Africa and the Middle East with plans to announce the opening of a hub office in the UAE soon.
