Hong Kong banks have continued to open accounts for mainland clients seamlessly, following the China Securities Regulatory Commission's crackdown on illegal cross-border securities on May 22, said Eddie Yue Wai-man, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority's chief executive.
The HKMA and the Securities and Futures Commission jointly issued a circular that same day, imposing additional requirements for mainland Chinese clients to open accounts.
Yue, who is leading the Hong Kong Association of Banks delegation on a visit to Beijing, said on Tuesday that Hong Kong banks have shown support for the regulatory rectification and have mostly put the additional requirements into practice.
Hong Kong is an open market, he noted, welcoming people worldwide to open accounts in the city, but the key is that the account-opening process and the funds involved must be fully legal and compliant.
He said the CSRC has made it clear that legal and compliant cross-border account openings and investments will not be affected, and that existing accounts will not be forcibly closed. Yue believed that these measures would benefit Hong Kong's wealth management industry and its status as an international financial center in the long run, while also improving the bank account opening process.
Sun Yu, chairman of the Hong Kong Association of Banks and vice chairman and chief executive of Bank of China (Hong Kong) (2388), said legal compliance is essential to the industry's development and that the industry will adhere to the HKMA's requirements. He believed this is a positive development for Hong Kong's long-term growth.
