China’s rich face million dollar question: stay and risk losing assets, or face the coronavirus abroad?

The number of rich Chinese moving abroad to safeguard their financial assets has grown in recent years

Concern about asset seizures has stoked enquiries about obtaining foreign citizenship, immigration consultants say

4-MIN READ4-MIN

China has an estimated 10.7 million migrants living abroad, with many wealthy citizens looking to gain residency in a second country to safeguard family and financial assets. Photo: Reuters

Published: 9:15pm, 31 Dec 2020Updated: 11:14pm, 31 Dec 2020

While some affluent Chinese would like to emigrate to escape a perceived harsher environment for private entrepreneurs at home, they are increasingly reluctant to do so – at least in the next few years – because of concern about the coronavirus pandemic in popular destinations abroad, consultants and businesspeople say.

Many are conflicted and feel under pressure given changing rules in China and around the world: move now and risk infection, or delay and risk assets being seized by the government in what is perceived to be a campaign against private businesspeople.

It is not uncommon for Chinese entrepreneurs, who have benefited most from the nation’s rapid growth in recent years, to fall foul of the authorities. The high-profile arrest of Chinese entrepreneur Sun Dawu in November and a squeeze on the country’s tech giants has sent chills through some quarters of the business sector, even though the Chinese government has repeated assured the country’s private business owners in recent months that they will be cherished and protected.

“All of a sudden, policies could change in any sector – fintech, financing, energy and entrepreneurship – and we private companies that might be forced to make adjustments,” said Ken Liu, a Zhejiang-based senior executive of a foreign trading firm. “It requires us to rethink the risks in the future for what we own and how to protect it.”

For many wealthy Chinese, the aim is to gain residency in a second country to safeguard family and financial assets, while keeping China as their primary place to live and work. But the pandemic has complicated the calculation.

Wendy Zhao and her husband own properties worth more than 20 million yuan (US$3 million) in Shenzhen, China’s hi-tech hub, and currently disagree over whether to move to New Zealand next year to start a new life.

“Our immigration application was successfully approved, but now I’m worried about the overseas pandemic and feel that only China has done a good job of controlling it,” she said.

“China is also one of the only countries whose economy is showing positive growth. I am not willing to move now and will put off moving until a much later date.