Hong Kong’s banks have a new weapon against scams: Accounts that require customers to visit a branch to access their funds.
The territory’s Monetary Authority calls these accounts a “Money Safe.”
Chief executive Eddie Yue introduced them in late 2024 in a letter [PDF] that stated they’re needed due to “the surge in fraud and scam cases in recent years with customer losses typically involving payments from customers’ bank accounts.”
Yue observed that scammers sometimes establish internet banking accounts without customers’ permission. The Monetary Authority therefore required all local banks to establish Money Safe accounts that allow customers to set aside funds which they can only access by visiting a brick-and-mortar bank. Digital banks that don’t operate branches require customers to visit their offices for ID checks.
As explained in a Hong Kong government announcement published on Tuesday, “When customers need to use the protected deposits, banks will conduct a face-to-face anti-scam verification with the customers, thus offering them a chance to carefully consider whether they have been scammed. Customers can transfer or withdraw the deposits only after completing the process.”
The Monetary Authority gave banks until December 31st to develop and deploy Money Safe accounts, and all have complied. Some put them into operation months ago, have since added features such as in app creation of Money Safe accounts, and have promoted their implementation as superior.
Hong Kong’s government will now promote Money Safe with advertising and other tactics, and is already encouraging residents to use the accounts to store any cash they don’t intend to spend in the near future.
Hong Kong’s financial services industry accounts for around a quarter of its gross domestic product. The territory is also widely seen as uniquely well positioned to facilitate trade with China, the world’s second-largest economy.
Protecting Hong Kong’s banks is therefore a priority for the territory’s government.
For what it’s worth, The Register subscribes to newsfeeds from many Asian governments. Only Hong Kong’s feed includes constant notifications of cyberattacks on banks. Scarcely a day passes without the territory’s government warning about newly-discovered phishing campaigns or fake bank websites.
Money Safe may make those attacks less effective. ®
