Hong Kong Monetary Authority: Mainland investors' account opening verification traced back to January 2023

ME News Report, May 27 (UTC+8), according to Cailian Press, regarding the matter of "Some banks in Hong Kong requiring signatures on investment account opening statements," the Hong Kong Monetary Authority responded today that the relevant regulatory requirements were issued to all recognized institutions on May 22.
The materials provided by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority show that when registering and managing investment accounts for Mainland Chinese investors, institutions must take three additional measures, including:

1. Closing investment accounts opened with suspicious or forged documents, identifying customer investment accounts opened with suspicious or forged documents since January 2023 or during any other period specified by the Monetary Authority. Such documents include identification proof;

2. Closing zero-balance inactive investment accounts, specifically those held by Mainland investors that have had 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 additional regulatory measures only apply to investment accounts, including those within comprehensive banking accounts. Non-investment functions (such as regular savings, recurring deposits, payments, loans, and credit cards) are not covered by these measures. Additionally, the measures apply to individual clients and do not apply to corporate or institutional clients. (Source: Cailian Press)