With the continuous development of mobile payments, virtual banking, virtual insurance and various financial technologies, people have enjoyed improved experience in retail banking and financial services. In the business sector, banks and FinTech organisations have been proactively introducing innovative services, such as remote account opening for SMEs and mobile wallets designed for businesses. The increasingly diversified development of the industry has brought benefits to both local and overseas businesses with needs for financial services in Hong Kong, promoting financial inclusion together.  

This article includes some notes on application for remote account opening services, mobile business banking and mobile wallet services, assisting everyone to choose suitable financial services, expand their businesses, and seize market opportunities. 

Many banks and business mobile wallets that support remote account opening for SMEs accept applications by sole proprietorships, partnerships and limited companies registered in Hong Kong. Businesses registered in Hong Kong that meet the account opening requirements of banks and business mobile wallets may consider opening both accounts for the greatest convenience.

In case of a business registered outside Hong Kong with the need for Hong Kong banking services, its overseas owner, shareholders, or directors may not be able to visit the branches of banks in person for identification and verification.  As such, the business may consider opening an RD Wallet account remotely. RD Wallet accepts remote account opening applications by businesses registered in over 190 countries and regions*. With RD Wallet, businesses can store money, and manage local & cross-border payments and foreign exchanges easily. 

In addition to the requirements of banks and mobile wallets regarding the place of business registration, businesses have to pay attention to the following limitations posed by some services: 

• Number of years of registration 
• Annual turnover of the business
• Only accept applications by businesses registered in Hong Kong with a single-layer shareholder structure

Some remote account opening services require the owners, shareholders, or directors to be holders of Hong Kong identity card. If the owners, shareholders or directors hold a Chinese resident identity card, a passport issued by an overseas country or region, according to the above application requirements, they may not be able to enjoy these services. In addition, you may also notice that some services have following requirements:

• Limitation on the number of shareholders and directors
• Limitation on the type of shareholders (e.g., some banks require shareholders to be individuals, not businesses or legal entities) 
• Limitation on the type of partnership (e.g., some banks do not accept applications by limited partnership)

Currently, the business banking services of some virtual banks support 2 to 3 currencies. Businesses with higher foreign exchange needs could consider opening both virtual bank and RD Wallet accounts. RD Wallet currently supports 5 currencies commonly used for regional trade - HKD, CNY, USD, EUR and JPY, and plans to support more in the near future. RD Wallet customers can enjoy 24/7 foreign exchange services anytime and anywhere, giving great support to their business needs.  What’s more – RD Wallet has introduced “Round Dollar” (“RDU”), a new account of unit, to help businesses manage foreign exchange rates more effectively.

Some services charge account opening fees and annual fees, and some have minimum account balance requirements (some banks will charge administrative fees if such requirement is not met). It is important to carefully review the fee details of various services to make wise choices.

The table below summarises some of the requirements of mobile or online business banking and business mobile wallet in terms of account opening and services for reference. 

Hong Kong is an international financial center where banks, financial institutions and Fintech organisations have been innovating and making breakthroughs to improve customer experience and service efficiency for local and overseas businesses with needs for financial services in Hong Kong. If your business fulfils the account opening requirements of banks and business mobile wallet, your business may consider opening a bank account as well as a mobile wallet account for greatest convenience:

^ Subject to successful completion of corporate identity verification on RD app and RD Wallet’s internal approval procedures, which include but are not limited to the provision of entity and business information in English for company search. Terms and conditions apply. Actual account opening time may differ depending on individual circumstances.  

The information contained in this article (other than those relating to products and services of RD Technologies), is compiled based on third party information and is for indicative and reference purposes only. RD Technologies makes no guarantee, representation or warranty on the accuracy or completeness of such third party information provided herein and shall not be responsible for any liability arising from the use and/or reliance on any information contained in this article (other than those related to its products and services). RD Technologies reserves the right to vary the service fees of RD Wallet from time to time without further notice. In case of any dispute, the decision of RD Technologies on all matters relating to RD Wallet shall be final.