# HKU Foundation

HKU Foundation is an Endowment / Foundation based in Hong Kong, Hong Kong.

## Overview

- **Organization type:** Endowment / Foundation
- **Headquarters:** Hong Kong, Hong Kong
- **Region:** Asia
- **Address:** Pokfulam, Hong Kong
- **Founded:** 1995
- **Assets under management:** Undisclosed
- **Website:** giving.hku.hk
- **LinkedIn:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/hku-foundation-1995

## Regulatory record

- **Reports private funds:** No

## About

The University of Hong Kong Foundation for Educational Development and Research was established in 1995 as a registered charitable organization. It was built by Dr. David Li Kwok Po, the university's Pro-Chancellor and a prominent Hong Kong banking figure, alongside a network of benefactors from the territory's real estate and industrial families. The Foundation pools donations from individual and corporate sources, including the Hong Kong Jockey Club and the Tin Ka Ping Foundation, directing the proceeds toward academic advancement and capital projects. The Foundation's asset base is concentrated in tangible campus real estate. Its portfolio includes the Hung Hing Ying Building, the T.T. Tsui Building — which also houses the University Museum and Art Gallery collection and its distinctive bronze lions — and the Fung Ping Shan Building. These properties generate income for scholarships, bursaries, and research initiatives. The Fund does not publicly disclose a detailed asset allocation, but its governance relies heavily on business leaders with real estate and construction surveying expertise, including board members active in the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors and the Hong Kong Institute of Surveyors. The Foundation is led by a board of directors dominated by Hong Kong family business principals. Dr. David Mong Tak Yeung, Chairman and CEO of Shun Hing Group, serves as a director. Ms. Wendy Gan Kim See, an executive director of Pacific Century Premium Developments, acts as an honorary director. The board's professional associations with the Real Estate Developers Association of Hong Kong and the Rotary Club of Queensway further anchor the Fund's ties to the local business community. Professor Xiang Zhang, President and Vice-Chancellor of HKU, provides the institutional executive leadership for the Foundation's activities. The Foundation functions as a hybrid endowment and real asset vehicle — distinct from a pure financial-portfolio model used by many Western university endowments. It converts benefactor contributions directly into durable campus infrastructure rather than purchasing external securities. This structure permanently ties the growth of the foundation's income-generating assets to the physical expansion of the university itself.

## Sectors

- Education
- Real Estate

## People

- Professor Xiang Zhang — President and Vice-Chancellor, The University of Hong Kong
- Dr. David Li Kwok Po — Founder and Pro-Chancellor, The University of Hong Kong

## Questions

### Who runs investment decisions at HKU Foundation?

Investment and allocation decisions are governed by the Foundation's board of directors, which draws heavily from Hong Kong's real estate and banking families. The board includes Dr. David Li Kwok Po, chairman of the Bank of East Asia, and Dr. David Mong Tak Yeung, chairman of Shun Hing Group. The day-to-day management is closely tied to the executive leadership of the University of Hong Kong, led by President Xiang Zhang.

### How is the HKU Foundation's portfolio structured?

The portfolio differs from a standard market-securities endowment. The Foundation's core assets are the income-generating buildings it holds on the University of Hong Kong's Pokfulam campus, such as the T.T. Tsui Building and the Hung Hing Ying Building. The Foundation channels funds from these properties and from benefactors directly into university programs, bypassing a conventional third-party fund-manager architecture.

### What is the relationship between the HKU Foundation and the University of Hong Kong?

The Foundation is the primary charitable fundraising and asset-holding arm of the University. It was founded in 1995 by Dr. David Li Kwok Po, who serves as the University's Pro-Chancellor. The President of the University, Professor Xiang Zhang, acts as a founder and sits at the executive level, ensuring the Foundation's spending directly supports the University's strategic priorities.

### Where do the HKU Foundation's donations originate?

The capital comes from a mix of prominent Hong Kong family offices, corporate benefactors, and charitable trusts. Known contributors include the Hong Kong Jockey Club, the Tin Ka Ping Foundation, and the Tigillus Foundation. The Foundation's board also directly connects it to the Shun Hing Group and Pacific Century Premium Developments through its directors' roles.

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Last updated: 2026-06-03T20:00:00.000Z

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