Dah Sing Banking (2356) is said to have proposed to raise the protection limit of the deposit protection scheme to HK$1 million from HK$800,000 suggested by the Hong Kong Deposit Protection Board.
With the three-month public consultation ending on October 12, nine small lenders and virtual banks led by Dah Sing have appealed to the DPB to elevate the protection cap further.
The group made this proposal because deposits protected by the new scheme will take up only 25 percent of total bank deposits in the city, far lower than the highest proportion of 70 percent in some countries.
The Hong Kong Association of Banks has submitted replies on behalf of the local banking industry to the DPB, indicating an agreement on the suggested limit of HK$800,000.
The DPB plans to release the results of the public consultation at the beginning of next year.
Meanwhile, BOC Hong Kong (2388) has started a hypothetical e-HKD pilot program to examine the use of digital dollars for prepaid services to part of its employees in the first phase.
This trial will involve about 10 merchants from various sectors.
In other news, virtual lender WeLab Bank is offering 8 percent interest rate a year for one-month deposits to new users of GoWealth services and its customized fund services.
This offer is for one-off investments of HK$10,000 or above and will end on October 16.
