Wealthy Chinese are starting to pull the plug on exit plans from their homeland as pessimism builds over the future of the world's second- largest economy.
At the weekend, the leader of the Chinese Communist party and its powerful central military commission stayed on for another five years, cementing his position as the most powerful leader since the end of Mao's rule. The 69-year-old is now in a position to rule for the rest of his life.
David Lesperance, a Europe-based lawyer who has worked with wealthy families in Hong Kong and China, says extending his rule beyond two terms is a tipping point for China's business elites.
According to Lesperance, he has already received instructions from Chinese business families to execute their fire escape plans.
There had been rumors in the months leading up to the congress that there was pressure on the president to change his policies.
There are inquiries and instructions for setting up family offices in the city-state, according to a senior partner at a Singapore law firm.
The clients I work with sawXi's third term as a foregone conclusion.
He said that Hong Kong had become less attractive due to Beijing's control over the territory.
The number of family offices in Singapore doubled from 400 at the end of 2020 to 700 a year later.
Ryan Lin, director of Singapore-based Bayfront Law, said he was approached by five families during China's party congress last week to set up a Singapore family office.
Lin, who has set up around 30 family offices in Singapore in the past year, said most Chinese would like to relocate there.
Lesperance said many of his clients spent years preparing their exit from China, legally moving capital to safe offshore jurisdiction and arranging alternative residences and new citizenships outside of China for their families.
He said that China's rich are worried about the rumour of an official wealth tax. Even though they have left, they are still worried about their personal safety.
There have been a number of temporary or longer term disappearances of high-profile people from public view over the last few years.
The family motto is to keep a fast junk in the harbour with gold bars and a second set of papers. A private jet, a couple of passports and foreign bank accounts are what the modern equivalent would be. The world we are in is difficult.
Some seem less prepared.
The founder of a US real estate platform for wealthy Chinese said he is struggling to handle the flood of inquires as most clients were in a hurry to leave the country.
There has been a spike in applications for US green cards for people with extraordinary ability, as the wait time is less than for investment-based green cards.
Sun Yu and Eleanor Olcott reported additional information.
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