Tencent chief sees bay area as magnet for talent
Billionaire Pony Ma Huateng, who is at the helm of one of the world’s largest internet empires, seeks more policy support to improve Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao’s position as magnets for highend talents as the country bets big on turning its bay area into an innovation hub and talent engine.
Ma, chief executive and co-founder of Tencent Holdings, told the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Forum in Hong Kong on Tuesday that governments in the area should join forces to attract talent from across the world.
He relished the idea of a talent program jointly launched by governments in Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao in a sign of the bay area’s determination to switch from a competitive to a collaborative mindset.
The first Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Forum was co-hosted by China Development Institute and One Country Two Systems Research Institute and organized by Tencent. It has drawn more than 400 heavyweight policymakers, business leaders and academics globally to share insights on how to build a world-class bay area for the world’s second-largest economy.
Guests include Wang Wei — who heads the nation’s logistics titan SF Express, and Wang Tao — the legendary boss of the world’s largest consumer drone company DJI.
Founded in Shenzhen in 1998 and listed in Hong Kong in 2004, Tencent has seen twothirds of its employees work and live in the Greater Bay Area.
That may explain why Ma describes himself as a strong advocate for, firm supporter of and active participant in the Greater Bay Area plan, evidenced by his bay area proposal to the National People’s Congress gathering in Beijing this year.
“We know fully well how much of a headache our Hong Kong staff have commuting between Hong Kong and the Chinese mainland everyday,” Ma said. “Working and living in the Greater Bay Area today remains quite different from what it would be like in Hong Kong and Macao.”
Ma said skill people in the two special administrative regions still have to count the days to avoid staying on the mainland for more than 180 days within a year. “Otherwise, they would be taxed at the higher mainland rate,” he explained.
At the forum, Ma put forward the idea of a “green visa” tailormade for top-notch talents, a big push for the free talent mobility across the bay area. He also clamored for tax subsidies to ease concerns Hong Kong and Macao’s talents have over working in the region.
“The proposed efforts are looking to polish the bay area’s brand as a habitat for high-end talent from across the world. Otherwise, promising talents may vote with their feet and migrate to other jurisdictions,” Ma said.