HONG KONG

Ban on Investment Advertising Lifted: Hong Kong has lifted its prohibition on advertising of investment products, such as equity funds, on radio and television, as well as in cinemas. The Securities and Futures Commission, the securities market regulator, said the move is in response to requests from the fund management industry. “As the general public in Hong Kong has become more sophisticated in matters concerning investment, the restrictions on advertising had become somewhat outdated,” SFC Chairman Robert Nottle said. However, any such advertisements will have to be authorized by the SFC, and this will provide investors with the same level of protection they currently enjoy, he said. The commission will require ads for investment products to include warning statements that must be read out loud at the end of each broadcast.