Hong Kong stock exchange boss Charles Li appointed to HKU governing council

Li, 59, will begin his three-year term at the University of Hong Kong’s top decision-making body on November 1

HKU hopes his extensive experience in the business and financial sectors will contribute to the university’s growth

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Charles Li, CEO of Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing, at Exchange Square in Central. Photo: Nora Tam

Published: 7:48pm, 30 Oct 2020Updated: 11:19pm, 30 Oct 2020

Hong Kong stock exchange boss Charles Li Xiaojia has been appointed to sit on the University of Hong Kong’s (HKU) governing council, days after the institution’s controversial appointment of two mainland Chinese academics.

Li, 59, who will take up the post on November 1, was tapped by the government for a three-year term on the 24-strong council, filling the vacancy resulting from the death of Edward Chow Kwong-fai, an accountant and member of China’s top political advisory body, in June this year.

The council, about two-thirds of which comes from outside HKU, is the top decision-making body of the university. Seven members, including the council chairman, are appointed by city leader Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor, the university’s ex officio chancellor.

The University of Hong Kong in Pok Fu Lam. Photo: Shutterstock

Li has been serving as the chief executive at Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing since 2010, and is the first mainland-born person to hold that role. Last month, he decided to bring forward his retirement from next year, saying he would step down from the stock exchange on December 31, 2020.

One of the longest-serving chief executives of a global stock exchange, Li received the Silver Bauhinia Star from the Hong Kong government earlier this month for his contribution to the city’s financial development.