The Hong Kong Monetary Authority Implements New Investment Account Measures for Mainland Investors

According to Caixin, in response to the matter of “some banks in Hong Kong requiring investors to sign a declaration when opening investment accounts,” the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) today stated that the relevant regulatory requirements were issued on May 22 to all authorized institutions. Materials provided by the HKMA indicate that regulated institutions must implement three additional measures when opening and managing investment accounts for mainland investors, including: 1. Closing investment accounts opened using suspicious or forged documents, and identifying client investment accounts opened with suspicious or forged documents—including identity documents—since January 2023 or any other period specified by the HKMA; 2. Closing inactive investment accounts with zero balances, specifically referring to investment accounts held by mainland investors that had no asset balance as of May 22, 2026 (the reference date) and had no customer-initiated activity during the 12 months prior to the reference date; 3. Requiring mainland investors to provide a written declaration confirming that all funds used to support investment activities and related settlements originate from legal sources outside mainland China when opening new investment accounts. The relevant documents indicate that these additional regulatory measures apply solely to investment accounts, including investment sub-accounts within comprehensive bank accounts; non-investment functions—such as regular savings, checking, term deposits, payments, loans, and credit cards—are not covered by these measures. Additionally, these additional measures apply only to individual clients and do not extend to corporate or institutional clients.