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Hong Kong Monetary Authority: Opening and managing investment accounts for mainland investors requires three additional measures, with account verification traced back to January 2023
On May 27, regarding the issue of "Some banks in Hong Kong requiring signatures for opening investment accounts," the Hong Kong Monetary Authority responded today that the relevant regulatory requirements were issued to all recognized institutions on May 22.
Materials provided by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority show that when registering and managing investment accounts for mainland investors, three additional measures must be taken, including:
1. Closing investment accounts opened with suspicious or forged documents, identifying customer investment accounts that have used suspicious or forged documents since January 2023 or during any other period specified by the Monetary Authority, including identity proof documents;
2. Closing zero-balance inactive investment accounts, specifically referring to investment accounts held by mainland investors that have no asset balance as of May 22, 2026 (reference date), and have had no customer-initiated activity in the 12 months prior to the reference date;
3. When opening a new investment account, obtaining a written declaration from the mainland investor confirming that all funds used to support investment activities and related settlements come from legitimate sources outside mainland China.
The relevant documents show that the new additional regulatory measures apply only to investment accounts, including investment accounts within comprehensive bank accounts. Non-investment functions (such as ordinary savings, fixed deposits, payments, loans, and credit cards) are not covered by these measures; additionally, the measures are applicable to individual clients and do not apply to corporate or institutional clients. (Cailian Press)