The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) is exploring the possibility of increasing the Exchange Fund’s gold holdings and participating in Hong Kong’s spot and futures markets, and is considering gradually transferring its physical gold holdings to designated vaults appointed by the Hong Kong Precious Metals Central Clearing Company Limited (HKPMCC), according to paragraph 45 of the Chief Executive’s 2026 Policy Address, delivered on 16 September 2026. The same paragraph sets the official launch of Hong Kong’s central clearing and settlement system for gold in the first quarter of 2027. Paragraph 46 states that Hong Kong’s storage area has exceeded 60,000 square metres with an inventory of more than 20,000 tonnes of metal since the London Metal Exchange (LME) included the city in its global warehousing network in 2025, and commits the Government to facilitating more LME-approved warehouses in the Northern Metropolis.
Gold balances in the HKPMCC system are held and settled on an unallocated basis with commingled holding, and eligible gold for settlement is approximately 400 fine troy ounce bars meeting international standards, as the Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau set out when the system entered trial operation on 7 July 2026. That release names Bank of China (Hong Kong) Limited as the system’s settlement institution and designated vault, and the Policy Address names no further vault operator. A deposit inside that perimeter is recorded on the HKPMCC central ledger as the balance of a participating bank, under a Clearing Rulebook that sets the rights and obligations of participating banks and designated vaults. Metal held outside the system remains governed by the storage contract between the depositor and the vault operator, so an instruction naming Hong Kong as the placement now has to identify which of the two arrangements it means. The approximate 400 oz eligibility specification keeps 1 kg and sub-kilo formats outside the clearing route, and metal in those formats moves by physical delivery on commercial storage terms. The Northern Metropolis commitment in paragraph 46 runs to LME-approved warehouses, and the 20,000 tonnes it records is metal inventory under LME warehousing rather than gold vault capacity. Paragraph 44 commits the Insurance Authority to increasing the insurance sector’s underwriting appetite for gold storage, and the Authority opened a dedicated specie insurance hotline in July 2026.
Paragraph 45 records an exploration and a consideration, with no tonnage, no timetable and no second designated vault stated. Appointment of designated vaults sits with the HKPMCC, and the tax concessions for the gold and commodity trading ecosystem are to go to the Legislative Council next year.