In the course of the 19th century, Hong Kong became one of Asia's most important trading centres. Switzerland's initial presence in Hong Kong dates back to 1842 with Theodor Jost, the first apostolic prefect on the island. At the beginning of the 20th century, Catholic and Protestant missionaries – in particular from the Basel Mission – and Swiss traders settled in the territory.
From 1842 to 1997, Hong Kong was a British colony. Today Hong Kong is governed under the principle of 'one country, two systems', which was formulated by Deng Xiaoping in 1997 ahead of the handover to China.
Hong Kong, historical dictionary of Switzerland (de,fr,it)