Policy & Regulatory Affairs

As the premier organization overseeing the professionalism of financial planners registered with IFPHK, the Policy and Regulatory Affairs Department was established to ensure that the IFPHK’s own ethical standards remain strong. The Policy and Regulatory Affairs department seeks the views of financial planning professionals so it can represent the interests of the financial planning community at government and regulatory level.

To provide feedback on the IFPHK’s Policy and Regulatory Affairs department, please email to regulatoraffairs@ifphk.org

Importance of Advocacy

An important part of the IFPHK’s work is to influence government policy to promote the interests of our members through the development of formal submissions to government and regulators. The IFPHK gathers member’s views and concerns through weekly alerts and interviews. Practical cases provided by members give our submissions credibility and substance.

The role of the IFPHK on Advocacy is outlined below.

Responsible for oversight of all regulatory, government and public policy issues relating to financial planning.
Dealing with regulators, government officials and external stakeholders to ensure the IFPHK’s voice is heard on financial planning related matters, and that the IFPHK’s standards for financial planning are incorporated into legislation, regulation and rules, where appropriate.
Prepares submissions to government and regulators, and provides lobbying support on matters likely to impact members and their clients.

The IFPHK also updates financial planning professionals on legislative developments via its weekly alerts and information web pages, as well as responding to specific member queries. We attend industry forums where we raise awareness of our issues among other financial services participants, and gain an appreciation of the matters impacting the broader financial services industry.

If you are interested to learn more about IFPHK’s involvement in responding to legislative and regulatory issues affecting the financial planning profession, you may refer to the table below:

Consultation Issue	Recipient	Submission Period
IFPHK’s Response to the Consultation Paper on the Proposed Regulatory Framework for Sustainability Assurance in Hong Kong	Accounting and Financial Reporting Council	March 2026
Consultation Paper on Legislative Proposal to Regulate Dealing in Virtual Assets	Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau	August 2025
Consultation Paper on Legislative Proposal to Regulate Virtual Asset Custodian Services	Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau	August 2025
Consultation Paper on Enhancement to the Deposit Protection Scheme in Hong Kong	Hong Kong Deposit Protection Board	October 2023
Consultation Paper on the Proposed Regulatory Requirements for Virtual Asset Trading Platform Operators Licensed by the Securities and Futures Commission	Securities and Futures Commission	March 2023
Consultation Paper on Proposed Amendments to Enforcement-related Provisions of the Securities and Futures Ordinance	Securities and Futures Commission	August 2022
Discussion Paper on Crypto-assets and Stablecoins	Hong Kong Monetary Authority	March 2022
Consultation Paper on Proposed Enhancements to the Competency Framework for Intermediaries and Individual Practitioners	Securities and Futures Commission	February 2021
Consultation Paper on the Eligibility of Weighted Voting Right Companies and Secondary-listed Companies for Inclusion in the Hang Send Index	Hang Seng Indexes Company Limited	March 2020
Consultation Paper on the Task Force on Review of School Curriculum	Education Development Bureau	October 2019
Consultation Paper on the Draft Code of Conduct for Licensed Insurance Agents	Insurance Authority	May 2019
Consultation Paper on Draft Code of Conduct for Licensed Insurance Brokers	Insurance Authority	May 2019
Consultation Paper on Draft Insurance (Financial and Other Requirements for Licensed Insurance Broker Companies) Rules	Insurance Authority	January 2019
Consultation Paper on Draft Guidelines on Exercising Power to Impose Pecuniary Penalty in Respect of Regulated Persons Under the Insurance Ordinance (Cap.41)	Insurance Authority	January 2019
Consultation Paper on Draft Insurance (Maximum Number of Authorized Insurers) Rules	Insurance Authority	December 2018
Consultation Paper on proposed guidelines on (i) “Fit and Proper” criteria and (ii) Continuing Professional Development requirements for licensed insurance intermediaries	Insurance Authority	November 2018
Consultation Paper on Proposed Enhancements to the Investor Compensation Regime and Related Legislative Amendments	Securities and Futures Commission	June 2018
Further Consultation on Offline Requirements Applicable to Complex Products	Securities and Futures Commission	May 2018
Consultation Paper on a Listing Regime for Companies From Emerging and Innovative Sectors	Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited	March 2018
Further Consultation on Proposed Disclosure Requirements Applicable to Discretionary Accounts	Securities and Futures Commission	January 2018
Consultation Paper on Online Distribution and Advisory Platforms	Securities and Futures Commission	August 2017
Consultation Paper on the Proposed Amendments to the Securities and Futures (Professional Investor) Rules	Securities and Futures Commission	March 2017
Consultation Paper on Proposals to Enhance Asset Management Regulation and Point-of-sale Transparency	Securities and Futures Commission	February 2017
Consultation Paper of the Proposals to Enhance the Financial Dispute Resolution Scheme by the Financial Dispute Resolution Centre	Financial Dispute Resolution Centre	December 2016
Join Consultation Paper on Proposed Enhancements to The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited’s Decision-making and Governance Structure for Listing Regulation Issued by the Securities and Futures Commission and the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited	Securities and Futures Commission	September 2016
Consultation Document on Retirement Protection	Commission on Poverty	June 2016
Consultation Document on Reporting System on Cross-boundary Transportation of Large Quantities of Currency and Bearer Negotiable Instruments	Security Bureau	October 2015
Consultation Document on Hong Kong Strategy for Financial Literacy	Investor Education Centre	October 2015
Consultation Document on Hong Kong’s Financial Competency Framework	Investor Education Centre	September 2015
Consultation Document on the Voluntary Health Insurance Scheme	Food and Health Bureau	April 2015
Further Consultation on the Client Agreement Requirements	Securities and Futures Commission	December 2014
Consultation Document on enhancements to the Deposit Protection Scheme	Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau & and Hong Kong Monetary Authority	December 2014
Consultation Document on Providing Better Investment Solutions for MPF Members	Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau & Mandatory Provident Fund Scheme Authority	September 2014
Consultation Document on an Effective Resolution Regime for Financial Institutions in Hong Kong	Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau	April 2014
Consultation Paper on Specification of Competency Standards for the Insurance Industry	Insurance Industry Training Advisory Committee	January 2014
Consultation Paper on the Proposed Amendments to the Professional Investor Regime and the Client Agreement Requirements	Securities and Futures Commission	August 2013
Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau Consultation Paper on Key Legislative Proposals on Establishment of an Independent Insurance Authority ("IIA")	Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau	January 2013
Mandatory Provident Fund Authority’s Consultation on Guidelines on Conduct Requirements for Registered Intermediaries	Mandatory Provident Fund Authority	July 2012
Mandatory Provident Fund Authority’s Consultation Document on Withdrawal of MPF Benefits	Mandatory Provident Fund Authority	March 2012
Securities and Futures Commission’s Consultation Document on the Proposals to amend the Code of Conduct in relation to the establishment of the Financial Dispute Resolution Centre and the enhancement of the regulatory framework	Securities and Futures Commission	January 2012
Proposed Guideline on Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing and (2) the Proposed Prevention of Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing Guideline Issued by the Securities and Futures Commission for Associated Entities	Securities and Futures Commission	November 2011
Securities and Futures (Amendment) Bill 2011 - Establishment of an Investor Education Council	Bills Committee on Securities and Futures	October 2011
Proposed Establishment of a Policyholder’s Protection Fund	Financial Services and Treasury Bureau	June 2011
“My Health, My Choice” Healthcare Reform Second Stage Consultation Document	Food and Health Bureau	January 2011
Evidential Requirements under the Securities and Futures (Professional Investor) Rule	Securities and Futures Commission	November 2010
Proposed Establishment of an Independent Insurance Authority	Financial Services and Treasury Bureau	September 2010
Proposed Establishment of an Investor Education Council and a Financial Dispute Resolution Centre	Financial Services and Treasury Bureau	May 2010
Proposal to Enhance Protection of the Investing Public	Securities and Futures Commission	December 2009
Conceptual Framework of the Legislative Proposal to Enhance the Anti-Money Laundering (AML) Regulatory Regime in respect of the Financial Sectors	Financial Services and Treasury Bureau	August 2009