Chairman Lin, Minister Counsellor Jin, distinguished guests, Ladies and Gentlemen,

Good Evening.

My name is Ben Cackett and I’m Head of Global Exports and Investment at the City of London Corporation – thank you for inviting me this evening.

It’s a pleasure to join you on behalf of the City of London Corporation to celebrate the launch of Hywin’s UK office. Welcome to join a fast growing Chinese financial services community in London which we are proud to support.

As you will know, the wealth of high-net-worth individuals globally enjoyed robust growth in the past few years.

And where is that growth strongest? In Asia. Asia’s asset management industry is growing at a rapid rate, far faster than the rest of the world’s. And China is leading the way.

The estimate is by 2020 the number of high-net-worth families in China will rise from 2 million in 2015 to a staggering almost 4 million, and China’s asset management industry alone will expand by about four times to a colossal 14 trillion Euros by 2015.

Wealth accumulation in China is driving demand for private wealth management services.

More and more Chinese high-net-worth families have realised the importance of having a sound wealth management strategy.

With the cool-down of Chinese stock and housing markets, they are now looking for overseas investment alternatives.

This presents a great opportunity for the UK.

UK’s private bankers and asset managers have long experience of managing assets for overseas clients, and meeting their investment needs.

With around £7 trillion assets under management in the UK, 40% of these assets are managed for clients based overseas.

The industry here is highly international and UK continues to thrive as a centre of excellence being the largest asset management centre in Europe by a significant margin and second in the world after the US.

London is central to the UK’s strong international position.

The Banker’s Global Asset Management Survey voted London the most attractive global location for relocating or expanding asset management operations, ahead of Hong Kong, Singapore and New York.

But, we are not complacent. We know that Chinese high-net-worth clients have their own unique characteristics.

To succeed, UK wealth managers need to continue to innovate their existing products and services, and to share and learn from their Chinese counterparts like Hywin.

That’s why the opening of Hywin’s UK operation is so timely and visionary.

Hywin Financial Holding Group, under the leadership of Chairman Han – is one of the biggest wealth and asset management companies in China – with over 28 years’ experience serving Chinese highnet-worth individuals and meeting their investment needs.

The knowledge and experience gained in China combined with UK’s wide range of wealth management products will, I am sure, provide new ways for Chinese high-net-worth individuals to protect and grow their wealth.

This is just the beginning and we look forward to more collaborations and dialogues between the UK and China.

At the City of London we welcome and facilitate international collaborations, to champion the UK financial and professional services sector and to support companies like Hywin to grow in London and the UK.

Following the Brexit referendum, the City of London Corporation has been heavily involved in ensuring the voice of the financial and professional services firms is heard in helping to shape the future relationship between the UK and the EU.

As a convenor of different parties, business, governments and regulators, we have an important and unique role to play.

There are three areas we are focusing our efforts on:

First, Mutual market access; the UK needs a bespoke deal for mutual market access that enables UK-EU trade in financial and professional services to continue based on mutual recognition and regulatory cooperation.

Second, Transitional arrangements -Sudden changes to the way businesses trade goods and services as a result of Brexit could cause serious disruption for businesses. The City wants a two phase transition period; first to bridge the gap from UK exit to a new partnership, second to allow businesses to adapt to the new framework once determined.

Third, continued access to skilled labour –the UK’s talent and expertise is a major competitive advantage. To retain its status as a global financial centre, the UK needs continued access to the best people both from the UK, the EU and across the world.

As we focus on developing a new relationship with the EU, we are also focused on building ever greater alliances with China and key international partners.

To this end, we have established a new global export and investment team, dedicated to promoting the UK’s financial services offer overseas, attracting and retaining inward investment to the UK and facilitating overseas trade in China and other priority markets.

We are working hard to ensure that London and the City continue to thrive as the world’s leading financial centre and tonight’s launch is symbolic of the growing partnership between China and the UK.

Thank you once again and congratulations to Hywin, on achieving this great milestone.