Why Hong Kong banks have shut down 40% of branches in recent years
New York may be known as the city that never sleeps, but many Hongkongers like to take care of banking transactions at 2am – a truth that helps explain why 40 per cent of physical branches have disappeared in recent years, according to local bank executives. While the number of Hong Kong licensed banks had remained stable around 150 for many years, the number of bank branches had dropped 40 per cent to about 900 from 1,500 in recent years, said Sunny Cheung, CEO of Shanghai Commercial Bank. “[In...
With the ability to transfer funds at 2am and AI to help plan investments, branches on every corner no longer make sense, local bankers say
New York may be known as the city that never sleeps, but many Hongkongers like to take care of banking transactions at 2am, a truth that helps explain why 40 per cent of physical branches have disappeared in recent years, according to local bank executives.
While the number of Hong Kong licensed banks had remained stable around 150 for many years, the number of bank branches had dropped 40 per cent to about 900 from 1,500 in recent years, said Sunny Cheung, CEO of Shanghai Commercial Bank.
“[In that,] you can see the change in the model of how we do banking,” Cheung said on Friday during a panel discussion at the annual conference of the Hong Kong Institute of Bankers, a professional body providing training and certification for banking qualifications.
The shift was permanent, said Simon Chung, CEO and managing director of Fubon Bank (Hong Kong), who spoke on the same panel.
