IKEA removes smart-home products from HK, citing National Security Law
Not entirely consistent with the Government's goal to make Hong Kong a Smart City by investing hundreds of HK$ billions into "Innovation and Technology". (12-Sep-2024)

Putting Police in the Policy Address
A new name would set the right tone. (18-Aug-2024)

Meaningless board games at HKEX, and how the UK FCA has just made an awful mistake
We review the proposals for a 6-seat and 9-year limit on so-called INEDs, along with other changes that do nothing to address HK's corporate governance deficit. Meanwhile, a slow-motion disaster is underway in the UK as it scraps fundamental investor rights. (28-Jul-2024)

An open letter to the Board of Time Watch (2033)
 (5-Jun-2024)

Another open letter to the Board of Allan (0684)
 (4-Jun-2024)

Help maintain the Webb-site Database
We are commencing the transition of the Webb-site Database to a crowd-sourced model. Whether it survives our Founder's doom depends on whether you, the users, are willing to volunteer your time, in a "Webbipedia" crowd-sourcing of corporate data. So please get involved, and you may get a free lunch at the end of the year. (19-May-2024)

The HK budget supercomputer hallucination
According to Paul Chan's budget speech, at undisclosed taxpayer expense, HK is supposed to produce a machine 3 times more powerful than the world's current fastest, within 2 years, and without using the best chips which were banned by the USA from export to HK following imposition of the National Security Law on HK. (2-Mar-2024)

HK's Rates reforms: damage to property values, needless complexity and misdirected handouts
It's not too late for the Government to return to fiscal sanity with a simple Rates system rather than practice the populist politics of petty envy. (30-Jan-2024)

Breaking: HK Government withholds Task Force report, citing threat to financial markets stability
We asked for the report. They refused. Now we're really wondering what's in it. (29-Jan-2024)

Hong Kong Island, major vehicle exporter?
Transport Department data suggest that HK Island exported a net 1.25m vehicles in 2022, more than are on the roads in the SAR, and the Island is on track to beat that in 2023. Take a look at the data and tell us why! (9-Dec-2023)

Webb-site bubble warning: Qi-House (8395)
 (29-Oct-2023)

An open letter to the Board of Allan International Holdings (0684.HK)
 (10-Sep-2023)

At last, the Webb-site HKSAR Accounts Explorer
In honour of the 25th anniversary of the SAR, a new tool to deep-dive into its financial history. This may be our last major project, but we hope you will agree that it was worth the time. (14-Jun-2022)

HK is running out of time to re-join the World
As our Editor sits in the air-lock waiting to re-enter HK, he looks at the now-unconstitutional quarantine regulations and the harm they are doing to HK. (5-May-2022)

A manifesto for Hong Kong
If you're going to be Chief Executive and you don't have a manifesto or any policy expertise beyond Security, Webb-site is here to help! (13-Apr-2022)

Concentration warning in Pak Tak (2668)
SFC, 16-Sep-2024
The top 26 holders have 95.35% at 4-Sep-2024.

Alan Chan Wai Hon v Foebe Chan Yuk
HK Court of First Instance, 13-Sep-2024
Alan Chan succeeds in his claim for repayment of loans to Ms Chan, then Chairman of China Zenith Chemical (0362) who succeeded her ex-boyfriend Jimmy Chan Yuen Tung as Chairman in 2012. The court accepted Alan's testimony that he was trading and holding shares of CZ at her direction. This implies that as a CZ director, she failed to disclose her dealings in those shares. If she was acting in concert with Jimmy Chan then there would also be implications under the Takeovers Code, as together they obtained more than 30% of CZ.

Chance Talent Management Ltd v Paul Clement Tam
HK Court of First Instance, 12-Sep-2024
The court dismisses CCB's bankruptcy petition against Mr Tam, finding a bona fide dispute over the alleged debt of HK$31.7m.

Sanction of China ZhengTong Auto (1728) and 5 ex-directors
SEHK, 10-Sep-2024
For unapproved guarantees in favour of a property company owned by the Chairman's family.

AFRC fines auditor Ting Ho Kwan & Chan & 3 staff for bad audit work on REXLot (ex-0555) for 2013 & 2014
Accounting & Financial Reporting Council, 9-Sep-2024
Well that took a while. The client is in liquidation and was delisted in 2021.

HKMA suspends registration of Mr Li Shek Tang, ex-Hang Seng Bank, for 9 months
HK Monetary Authority, 6-Sep-2024
For photocopying a client signature onto a form. He now works at ICBC.

Chief Inspector of Police and wife charged with accepting over HK$1.14m in bribes and MIPO
ICAC, 4-Sep-2024
It's been quite a while since such a senior officer in the Police Service, sorry, we mean Police Force, has been charged with corruption.

Private cello tutor charged with fraud over purchase of cello
ICAC, 4-Sep-2024
Not that old fiddle again! We note that in 2020, Chairman Instruments Trading Ltd admitted paying kickbacks to tutors on instrument sales and was fined HK$160k.

SFC commences legal proceedings against SoftMedx Healthcare (0648), its ex-directors and de facto directors | Transaction announcement
SFC, 4-Sep-2024
This relates to our famous Enigma Network and a 2016 transaction we flagged in which SoftMedx bought a 9.9% stake in New Ray Medicine (6108) for a 265% premium to market, from a BVI company, the name and owner of which weren't disclosed, but we identified as Town Health (3886). In our view, this case is too little, too late. It does not involve any criminal charges.

Concentration warning in Sanergy (2459)
SFC, 2-Sep-2024
The top 26 holders plus the shares not on the HK register amount to 90.20%. The stock was added to the MSCI Small-Cap Index on Friday night (30-Aug) and is due to enter the Hang Seng Composite Index on 9-Sep.

SFC bans thief Charles Lam Chung Yiu, ex-UBS, for life | Reasons for sentence
SFC, 2-Sep-2024
He intercepted payments due by UBS to clients who were overcharged in prior transactions. He legally changed his name to client names twice, getting new IDs to open bank accounts to receive the money. He also sent funds to sellers of handbags and watches, and sold watches to Sun Moon International Ltd. He was arrested at HK Airport in Dec-2020 heading for the UK with Rolex watch tags and immigration papers for him and his dog. His wife is already there.

HKMA fines WeChat Pay HK$875k for due diligence failures
HK Monetary Authority, 30-Aug-2024
Webb-site calculates that the fine is equal to about 3 minutes and 38 seconds of the 2023 net profit of parent Tencent (0700). The HKMA cites "the need to send a clear deterrent message to the industry".

PECS Register monthly update
HK Government, 30-Aug-2024
What ex-senior civil servants have been up to this month.

Philip Ma Ching Yeung v Winnie Chin Wai Yee
HK District Court, 29-Aug-2024
Mr Ma, Deputy Chairman of Tai Sang Land (TSL, 0089), is sentenced to 3 weeks in jail, suspended for 12 months, for his contempt of court in failing to pay litigation costs allowance to his wife as ordered. The judge calls it "a deliberate breach with contumacious intent". In mitigation, his lawyer highlighted his philanthropy as Chairman of the Tung Wah Group of Hospitals for which he received a Bronze Bauhinia Star. It transpired that almost all his HK$9m donation to TWGH had come from TSL and a family company, with only $3,099 paid from his own funds in 2022/23. The case is FCMC 11432/2018.

Sanction of Brilliance China Automotive (1114) and 3 ex-directors
SEHK, 27-Aug-2024
For a massive CNY53.4bn of unauthorised financial support to entities including its controlling shareholder, which led to losses of CNY8.3bn.

Venus Medtech (2500): we had secret consulting agreements with our INEDs Anthony Wu Ting Yuk and Joseph Lau Wan Yee
Company announcement, 26-Aug-2024
We note that the respective amounts of HK$860k and HK$430k were not disclosed in the table of directors' pay in the annual reports. Mr Wu, who still claims to be independent and has paid the money back, is now Chairman of the company and regards it as a "non-material issue".

Sir Elly Kadoorie & Sons Ltd v Samantha Jane Bradley
HK Court of Appeal, 26-Aug-2024

GoFinTech Innovation (0290) buys more shares in Jinhai Medical Technology (2225)
Company announcement, 23-Aug-2024
The SFC issued a concentration warning in Jinhai's stock in Jul-2021 when 20 holders had 95.14%. It's up 48.7% since then, so GoFinTech appears to be buying into a bubble. Jinhai had net assets of just S$37.5m (then HK$222m) at 31-Dec-2023 and now has a market value of HK$5803m. GoFinTech's previous purchase on 15-Mar-2024 was from Bestone Asset Management (BAM), said to be an independent third party, the owners of which are not disclosed. We note that Liu Zhiwei, a 17% shareholder of GoFinTech and its chairman until 28-Feb-2024, was once Chairman of BAM.

Concentration warning in GoFintech Innovation (0290)
Company announcement, 23-Aug-2024
The top 23 holders have 90.55% of the stock.

SME director gets 30 months' jail for HK$102.5m bank loans fraud
ICAC, 20-Aug-2024
The fraud was facilitated by the HK Government's interventionist corporate welfare schemes in which taxpayers guarantee loans to businesses. He was acting for an unnamed "mastermind of the scheme" whom the ICAC does not identify.