ZA Bank partnered with Industrial Bank to launch a Cross-boundary Wealth Management Connect Southbound Scheme service, and the digital lender said it was the first Hong Kong digital bank to provide the cross-border investment option.
Under the Southbound Scheme, the bank said eligible investors in the nine mainland cities that make up the Greater Bay Area could access wealth management products across the boundary through the newly launched service. Investors open a mainland remittance account through Industrial Bank, complete qualification checks and a risk assessment, and then operate a dedicated investment account through the ZA Bank app.
SERVICE AND PARTNERSHIP
The service was rolled out in partnership with Industrial Bank. Industrial Bank manages the mainland remittance account, while ZA Bank operates the dedicated investment account in Hong Kong. Initial products include renminbi, Hong Kong dollar and foreign-currency time deposits and low- to medium-high-risk funds authorised by the Securities and Futures Commission.
Funds move only between the two dedicated accounts, in a closed loop using the Cross-border Interbank Payment System.
ZA Bank chief executive Calvin Ng described becoming the first digital bank in Hong Kong to launch the service as a significant milestone and said the bank aimed to use fintech to simplify cross-border wealth management.
REGULATORY AND OPERATIONAL CONTEXT
The Southbound Scheme forms part of a broader Cross-boundary Wealth Management Connect framework that covers the nine mainland cities of the Greater Bay Area. The initiative was designed to enable eligible mainland investors to access products available in Hong Kong, under arrangements agreed by the relevant authorities.
The service operates within the existing Southbound channel, with an individual investment quota of up to RMB3 million per investor. Applicants need more than two years of investment experience and must meet income and asset requirements set by regulators, and customers assessed as vulnerable are excluded.
Sources: ZA Bank, Fintech News HK
Bank news that matters, every weekday.
Follow The Global Banker on LinkedIn