A Chara
It’s official, May is nearly over.
That certainly went by quickly. There we were thinking, “It’s April. Summer will be here soon.”
And then May comes and goes, and we’re set for June with thoughts of summer holidays and travel.
Speaking of which, if you’re planning a trip to Ireland, there’s good news, the weather there is fine and expected to stay warm for a while, with temperatures forecast to go as high as 22C! (I know! How can any person tolerate such heat?)
The bad news, yes, sorry, there’s always a second shoe; fuel prices are set to go up.
But take heart, Dublin Airport introduced new scanners so passengers will no longer have to remove laptops, then spend 10 minutes digging for all those bottles of liquids.
And another plus, thanks to Neil McCormick and the great team at Lifestyle Insurance, you can get a whopping 25% off your travel insurance costs with policies starting for as little as HK$1,237.
But this offer is exclusively for Irish Chamber members and their families (doesn’t that make you feel special?)
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May in Hong Kong
But before we get too far ahead of ourselves, May was a full month both here in Hong Kong and at home, with the second in our Lunch Roundtable with Enterprise Ireland (EI) series.
These are informal, and you can just drop by to enjoy the wonderful hospitality of those great people at EI, get a free lunch and take advantage of a convivial forum where anyone with a connection to or interest in Ireland can find people who can help them.
It’s all part of our drive to make the Chamber more relevant, more inclusive, and more useful not just for the Irish community but for the Hong Kong community as a whole. And don’t worry. We won’t force you to become a member or “volunteer” for our next event because we don’t have to. We figure you’ll see the sense in joining when you realize just how friendly and responsive we can be.
And we ended the month with one last major event: The ICSATA May Trade Commission to China.
The Ireland China Science and Technology Association (ICSATA) is a non-profit international organization with support and endorsement from the Irish Embassy to China, the Chinese Embassy to Ireland, relevant departments from both the Irish and Chinese governments, the European Commission, and the Mission of China to the European Union.
The organization aims to develop an international platform for science and technology exchanges to promote overall collaboration between Ireland, the EU, and China.
This was the ICSATA's first trade mission in China post-Covid. |
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A Bit of May in Ireland May was also an important month in Ireland’s history, with the Centenary on May 24th of the end of the civil war.
At the Garden of Remembrance in Dublin, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar and Tánaiste Micheál Martin placed a wreath to remember those who died with the inscription: “I gcuimhne orthu siúd go léir a cailleadh le linn Chogadh na gCarad (in memory of all those lost during the Civil War)”. So someone really knocked themselves out coming up with that.
The ceremony marked a brief interlude before members of the coalition government got back to the more serious business of slinging mud at each other over the annual game of lofting budget proposals, with the Taoiseach being accused of “pure electioneering,” presumably considered by some to be a surprising trait in a politician.
Outside of party politics, Ireland’s oldest woman turned 109. Máirín Hughes celebrated her 109 birthday at Maryfield Nursing Home in Chapelizod, Dublin ascribing her longevity to being “rich in the company I have.”
(Which is a golden opportunity for us to make another shameless plug for you to join the chamber. It appears it could help you live longer.)
Elsewhere, Munster win the URC trophy, their first trophy in 12 seasons; Limerick are set to defend the All-Ireland title as Cork come up short in the Gaelic Grounds and Wexford pull a survival act against Kilkenny.
And, if you’ll allow us a personal moment, we’d like to pay tribute to Tina Turner who died earlier in the month at the age of 83.
Sure she wasn’t Irish, but she brought so much talent and joy with her voice, and no one who was there could ever forget how she brought down the house at Croke Park in 1996 and 3Arena in 2009 – Imithe ach níor dhearmad riamh. |
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New Corporate Member. We’re delighted to introduce our newest corporate member.
Precious Metals Asia is a family-owned bullion trading company based in Hong Kong, with decades of experience trading in investment grade Gold, Silver, Platinum and Palladium bars and coins.
It counts some of the most recognized international producers of investment grade bullion products as their suppliers and their customer base includes bullion shops from Japan to Singapore, major jewelry producers, electronic trading platforms for institutional and retail traders, and professional and retail investors.
Recently registered as a Category A Dealer in Precious Metals and Stones with Hong Kong Customs & Excise under the new Hong Kong supervisory rules, their experience and expertise are regularly called upon by the media when reporting on trends in the physical bullion markets.
Precious Metals Asia is in the process of forming their first business connection to Ireland by onboarding Irish Gold and Silver coin producer Tara Coins into their supply chain.
As a special offer Precious Metals Asia will extend special pricing to any member of the Irish Chamber of Commerce of Hong Kong for Gold and Silver bars. Please contact Gina So at 2392 2280 or info@preciousmetalsasia.com and mention "Irish Chamber offer" for enquiries. |
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Our aim is always to promote and support business relations between Ireland and Hong Kong, so we are proud to host this event which will explore how the Web3 real-world lending markets are set to revolutionize business finance while examining the complexities of the legal landscape related to real-world assets.
The panel, brought together by the Irish Chamber of Commerce, will specifically address the legal aspects of RWA tokenization, providing valuable insights from industry experts.
Moderated by Stephen Browne (Co-Founder at Sors Digital Assets and Defactor), our distinguished all-Irish panel includes: - Padraig Walsh - Partner at Tanner De Witt and one of the foremost legal authorities on blockchain and cryptocurrencies in Hong Kong.
- Padraig Seif - a fully licensed German attorney, English solicitor and Foreign Legal Consultant with Boase Cohen & Collins with unique perspectives on tokenized precious metals and beyond
- Calvin Crilly, Partner at BGA Law and qualified in the British Virgin Islands, Ireland, England and Wales and an experienced offshore lawyer advising on various aspects of cryptocurrency fund setup structures and the regulation of virtual asset service providers.
Prepare your questions and join Defactor and the Irish Chamber of Commerce for a casual get-together over a drink at Club Dao - Hong Kong’s favourite crypto club! |
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We will be joining with the British Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong to host the perfect event for bring together our two communities together and to give you a major opportunity to connect with people and industries outside your own community. |
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Working with Humans Matter, this event will look at self-care and provide actionable lessons you can take away with you.
The agenda: - Welcoming participants
- Understanding of emotions and cognitive biases preventing us from adopting a new desirable behaviour.
- Collectively identify the levers on which to act to develop the capacity to change.
- Debrief and key takeaways.
- Individual commitments on actions to implement to enable a change in behaviour.
Cost & Fundraising. When purchasing your ticket, you contribute to supporting The Human Factor NGO action across the world (10%). The mission of the NGO is: to educate everyone on how to take care of themselves, others and their environment by mobilising cognitive resources.
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Mark Your Calendars That’s not all. Here’s another event coming up soon, details to follow! |
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P.S. if you’ve enjoyed reading this … Then why not join our all new, and very exciting, Whatsapp group. This group will provide members with an easy way to stay up to date on the latest news, events, and updates from the Chamber. |
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P.P.S. Oh, and one more thing… If you haven’t already, why not join us?
The Irish Chamber can offer you the kind of support, advice and network you won’t get anywhere else.
You know good business is about connections and opportunities, but without the first you won’t get the second.
Our members have a wealth of experience in a wide range of fields across international borders, all of which can help you save time, energy, and money. So join us, you know it makes sense. |
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The Irish Chamber of Commerce of Hong Kong Unit 1, 16th Floor, Gee Tuck Building, 16-20 Bonham Strand East, Sheung Wan
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