Author Archives: hksar gov

The following is issued on behalf of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority:

     The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) wishes to alert members of the public to a press release issued by Mox Bank Limited relating to phishing instant messages, which have been reported to the HKMA.  A hyperlink to the press release is available on the HKMA website.
      
     The HKMA wishes to remind the public that banks will not send SMS or emails with embedded hyperlinks which direct them to the banks’ websites to carry out transactions. They will not ask customers for sensitive personal information, such as login passwords or one-time password, by phone, email or SMS (including via embedded hyperlinks).
      
     Anyone who has provided his or her personal information, or who has conducted any financial transactions, through or in response to the instant messages concerned, should contact the bank using the contact information provided in the press release, and report the matter to the Police by contacting the Crime Wing Information Centre of the Hong Kong Police Force at 2860 5012. read more

     The Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau (CSTB) announced today (December 31) the reappointment of Mrs Margaret Leung Ko May-yee as the Chairperson of the Advisory Committee on Arts Development (ACAD) and Miss Agnes Tang In-… read more

The following is issued on behalf of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority:

     The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) has completed its annual assessment of the list of Domestic Systemically Important Authorized Institutions (D-SIBs). Based on the assessment results, the list of authorized institutions designated as D-SIBs remains unchanged compared to the list of D-SIBs published by the HKMA on December 29, 2023. The latest list of D-SIBs is shown in the Annex.
      
     Under the D-SIB framework, each of the authorized institutions designated as a D-SIB will be required to include a Higher Loss Absorbency (HLA) requirement into the calculation of its regulatory capital buffers within a period of 12 months after the formal notification of its designation. The HLA requirement applicable to a D-SIB (expressed as a ratio of an authorized institution’s Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) capital to its risk-weighted assets as calculated under the Banking (Capital) Rules) ranges between 1 per cent and 3.5 per cent (depending on the assessed level of the D-SIB’s systemic importance). Compared to the list of D-SIBs published on December 29, 2023, there is no change to the HLA requirements applied to the designated D-SIBs. 
      
     Further details about the decision can be found on the HKMA website (Systemically Important Authorized Institutions (SIBs)).
      
Background

1. D-SIB framework in Hong Kong
 
     The Banking (Capital) Rules and the HKMA’s regulatory framework for D-SIBs follow the provisions in “A framework for dealing with domestic systemically important banks” issued by the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision in October 2012, by enabling the Monetary Authority (i) to designate an authorized institution as a D-SIB if the Monetary Authority considers the authorized institution to be of systemic importance in the context of the Hong Kong banking and financial system and (ii) to require an authorized institution designated as a D-SIB to be subject to an HLA capital buffer.
      
     The rationale for imposing an HLA requirement on D-SIBs is to reduce any probability of them becoming non-viable. This is considered both prudent and justified in view of the greater impact that they could have, in the unlikely event of their failure, on the domestic financial system and the local economy more broadly. 
 
2. HLA requirement for authorized institutions designated as D-SIBs
 
     The Monetary Authority is empowered under sections 3U and 3V of the Banking (Capital) Rules to designate D-SIBs and to determine an HLA requirement for each of these D-SIBs by reference to the degree of domestic systemic importance which the Monetary Authority assesses them to bear. To achieve this aim, the HKMA’s regulatory framework for D-SIBs provides for authorized institutions designated as D-SIBs to be allocated to different HLA “buckets”. This differentiated approach reflects the diversified nature and varying degrees of systemic importance of authorized institutions in Hong Kong.
      
     The designated D-SIBs must apply the HLA in the calculation of their regulatory capital buffers within 12 months of the formal notification of their designation. There are five HLA buckets in total ranging from 1 per cent to 3.5 per cent. While only the first four buckets (i.e. from 1 per cent to 2.5 per cent) have been populated so far, the framework includes an empty 3.5 per cent bucket to encourage D-SIBs to refrain from becoming even more systemically important. 
      
     The HLA applied to a D-SIB serves (together with the Countercyclical Capital Buffer) as an extension of the Basel III Capital Conservation Buffer. Accordingly, if and when a D-SIB’s CET1 capital ratio falls within the extended buffer range, the D-SIB will be subject to restrictions on the discretionary distributions it may make. The effect of this is that D-SIBs will be required to retain earnings in order to bolster their regulatory capital. read more

     The Government today (December 31) announced that the Financial Secretary has appointed six new non-official members including three new members recruited under the Member Self-recommendation Scheme for Youth (MSSY), and reappointed… read more

The following is issued on behalf of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority:

     The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) announced today (December 31) that the total assets of the Exchange Fund amounted to HK$4,026.7 billion as at November 30, 2024, HK$11.6 billion higher than that at the end of October 2024. Foreign currency assets increased by HK$19.8 billion while Hong Kong dollar assets decreased by HK$8.2 billion.

     The rise in foreign currency assets was mainly due to mark-to-market revaluation of investments, interest income from investments and issuance of Certificates of Indebtedness, which were partly offset by a reduction in the month-end balances of unsettled purchase of securities. The decline in Hong Kong dollar assets was mainly due to mark-to-market revaluation of Hong Kong equities.

     The Currency Board Account shows that the Monetary Base at the end of November 2024 was HK$1,950.1 billion, increased by HK$12.4 billion, or 0.6%, from the end of October 2024.  The increase was mainly due to the increase in the outstanding amount of Certificates of Indebtedness and amortisation of discount on Exchange Fund Bills and Notes issued.

     The amount of Backing Assets increased by HK$19.4 billion, or 0.9%, to HK$2,141.1 billion at the end of November 2024.  The increase was mainly attributable to interest income from investments, the issuance of Certificates of Indebtedness and mark-to-market revaluation of investments. The Backing Ratio increased from 109.50% at the end of October 2024 to 109.79% at the end of November 2024.
 
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     At present, four press releases relating to the Exchange Fund’s data are issued by the HKMA each month. Three of these releases are issued to disseminate monetary data in accordance with the International Monetary Fund’s Special Data Dissemination Standard (SDDS). The fourth press release, on the Exchange Fund’s Abridged Balance Sheet and Currency Board Account, is made in accordance with the HKMA’s policy of maintaining a high level of transparency. For the month of December 2024, the scheduled dates for issuing the press releases are as follows: