ENG-1988 — Page 120

INDUSTRY AND TRADE

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The ordinance is subject to continual revision and improvement on the advice of the Standing Committee on Company Law Reform which was set up in 1984. The primary task of the committee is to ensure that Hong Kong's company law meets the most up-to-date needs of government and business. Further amendments to the ordinance were made by the Companies (Amendment) Ordinance 1987, the Companies (Amendment) (No. 2) Ordin- ance 1987 and the Companies (Amendment) Ordinance 1988, the Companies (Amend- ment) (No. 2) Ordinance 1988 and the Companies (Amendment) (No. 3) Ordinance 1988 which were enacted on February 20, 1987, July 3, 1987 and February 12, 1988, July 8, 1988 and December 2, 1988.

On incorporation, a company pays a registration fee of $600 plus $6 for every $1,000 of nominal capital. In 1988, 30 474 new companies were incorporated - 4 094 more than in 1987. The nominal capital of new companies registered totalled $4,400 million. Of the new companies, 112 had a nominal share capital of $5 million or more. During the year, 8 613 companies increased their nominal capital by amounts totalling $45,052 million on which fees were paid at the same rate of $6 per $1,000. At the end of 1988, there were 213 515 local companies on the register, compared with 185 588 in 1987.

Companies incorporated overseas are required to register certain documents with the Companies Registry within one month of establishing a place of business in Hong Kong.

A registration fee of $500 and some small filing fees are payable in such cases. During the year, 250 of these companies were registered and 191 ceased to operate. At the end of the year, 2 348 companies were registered from 64 countries, including 587 from the United States, 344 from the United Kingdom and 275 from Japan.

The Companies Registry also deals with the incorporation of trustees under the Registered Trustees Incorporation Ordinance, and with the registration of limited partnerships.

Money Lenders

Under the Money Lenders Ordinance, which came into force in December 1980, anyone wishing to carry on business as a money lender must apply to a Licensing Court, consisting of a magistrate and two lay assessors, for a licence. During the year the Money Lenders (Amendment) Ordinance 1988 was enacted. This contained a number of provisions to amend both the procedures and the substantive law. The main purpose of the amendments is to make it clear that genuine financial transactions between parties of equal bargaining status may be excluded from some or all of the provisions of the Money Lenders Ordinance while at the same time ensuring that protection is retained for the private individual in a typical money lending transaction.

Any application for a licence is in the first instance submitted to the Registrar General as Registrar of Money Lenders and a copy is sent to the Commissioner of Police, who may object to the application. The application is advertised, and any member of the public who has an interest in the matter also has the right to object. During the year, 442 applications were received and 426 licences were granted. At the end of 1988, there were 448 licensed money lenders.

The ordinance provides severe penalties for a number of statutory offences, such as carrying on an unlicensed money lending business. It also provides that any loan made by an unlicensed money lender shall not be recoverable by court action. With certain exceptions, primarily authorised institutions under the Banking Ordinance, any person, whether a licensed money lender or not, who lends or offers to lend money at an interest rate exceeding 60 per cent per annum commits an offence and agreement for

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