Reason for this visit

The international foreign exchange market in Hong Kong has been developing since the 1970s. Due to the removal of foreign exchange control in Hong Kong in 1973, there has been a large inflow of international capital, and an increasing number of financial institutions operating foreign exchange business have mushroomed. The foreign exchange market has become more and more active, developing into an international foreign exchange market. The Hong Kong foreign exchange market is an invisible market with no fixed trading venue. Traders conduct foreign exchange transactions through various modern communication facilities and computer networks. Hong Kong's geographical location and time zone conditions are similar to those of Singapore, making it very convenient to trade with other international foreign exchange markets. Participants in the Hong Kong foreign exchange market are mainly commercial banks and financial companies. There are three types of foreign exchange brokers in this market: local brokers, whose business is limited to Hong Kong; international brokers, who expanded their business to the Hong Kong foreign exchange market after the 1970s; international brokers that developed in Hong Kong, whose business has expanded to foreign exchange markets abroad. In order to help investors or practitioners have a more comprehensive understanding of foreign exchange brokers in Hong Kong, the survey team is going to pay on-site visits to them.

On-site visit

In this issue, the investigation team went to Hong Kong, China to visit the foreign exchange broker Funderstone as planned according to its registered regulatory address that Room 1802, Capital Centre, 151 Gloucester Road, Wan Chai, Hong Kong.

The survey personnel came to the destination on February 11, 2023, where a common commercial building was situated in a famous traditional business area of Wan Chai, with convenient MTR and various public transportations. And an automobile store of well-known Porsche was in the front of the building. There were also plenty of shops, restaurants, residential buildings and department stores surrounded by a clean environment with huge crowds of people. 

After entering the building, the investigation team found that room 1802 was occupied by the “Funderstone Securities Holdings Limited” from company directory in the lobby of Capital Centre.

The survey team arrived at room 802 on the 8/F, and spotted forex broker Funderstone’s logo and company name, “Funderstone Securities Holdings Limited” in the office.

Therefore, it is confirmed that Funderstone has a physical presence here.

Conclusion

The investigators went to Hong Kong to visit forex broker Funderstone as scheduled, and its logo and company name could be found at the business address publicly displayed by the broker, which indicates that the broker has a physical business office. Unfortunately, the survey personnel were not able to enter the company for an internal visit, so the specific scale of its business is unknown. Investors are advised to make a sensible choice based on a comprehensive consideration.

Disclaimer

The content is used for informational purpose only, and shall not be taken as a final order for making a choice.