Hong Kong's Three Most Iconic Companies Were Founded by Scotsmen

Hong Kong became an essential trading port in the British Empire after their victory in the First Opium War. However, often overlooked is the impact Scottish businessmen have had on the history of Hong Kong.

In fact, Hong Kong as we know it probably would not exist if it weren’t for two Scotsmen who made their fortunes in the opium trade: William Jardine and James Matheson. Together, they joined Magniac & Company, which they renamed Jardine, Matheson & Co., and heavily lobbied Lord Palmerston to have the British government force China to open its territory to British merchants — a move that eventually led to the First Opium War and the cession of Hong Kong Island to Great Britain.

Likewise, the healthcare chain Watsons predates Hong Kong. In 1856, Dr. Thomas Boswell Watson from Edinburgh, Scotland, became co-owner of the Hong Kong Dispensary, an offshoot of the Canton Dispensary, which had been in operation since 1828. In 1858, his nephew, Alexander Skirving Watson, took over the business and, in 1871, renamed it A.S. Watson & Company.

Hong Kong’s most iconic company, however, is without a doubt HSBC, which stands for the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation. Although headquartered in London, in the UK, it was founded in Hong Kong by Thomas Sutherland from Aberdeen, Scotland, in 1864.