The Emirates Family Office Association (EFOA), an independent body supporting UAE and global family offices, announces a new Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) – for a strategic partnership with The Hong Kong Academy for Wealth (HKAWL).
The mutually beneficial partnership will see the two entities focus on collaborative networking, knowledge exchange and capacity building between Greater China and the UAE, the EFOA said in a statement.
Founded in 2023, HKAWL "fosters collaboration, networking, knowledge sharing and talent development across the sector- and is committed to invigorating a vibrant landscape for family offices worldwide".
With strong alignment between EFOA’s and HKAWL’s respective missions, the partnership will explore further potential areas of cooperation and support for each organization’s activities, with a focus on training and development, to strengthen the positions of Abu Dhabi and Hong Kong as global family office hubs.
Adam Ladjadj, founder and chairman of EFOA, said: “HKAWL is a leading institute in the family office ecosystem and a natural partner for EFOA to work alongside as we promote collaboration and knowledge sharing among our member bases. The family office industry is expanding rapidly. It is vital the sector – regionally and globally – is engaged with new learning and relationship building opportunities to ensure best practices and ways of working for all.”
Fahad Al Gergawi, EFOA board member, said: “We were pleased to identify HKAWL as an organisation that engages audiences aligned to EFOA, focusing on family principals, next-gens and Single-Family Office leaders. Our members now can lean on a regionally connected partner to help them navigate the cross-border connections that are often opaque and costly to authenticate in Asia, and vice versa for the HKAWL network looking to the Middle East.”
Angel Chia, executive director of HKAWL, said: “As HKAWL cultivates a growing network of family peers, we rely on more like-missioned partners to extend the cohort network. We are excited to facilitate further collaborations between Asia and the Middle East through this partnership with EFOA.”
Adrian Cheng, chairman of HKAWL, added: “The need for legacy development by wealth and business families transcends borders, particularly as both Asian and the Middle East are experiencing similar challenges of family enterprise transformation, cultivating next-gens, and formalizing and professionalizing family office governance. We think the MOU presents the opportune time for families between Asia and the Middle East to learn and evolve together, to form the bedrock of further collaboration.”
EFOA’s partnership with HKAWL follows the association’s 2024 MOU signings with the Middle East Venture Capital Association, the entity dedicated to the advancement of the venture capital industry in the MENA region, and Wind, the leading Chinese financial data provider.
