Hong Kong Banks Maintain «Lai See» Tradition
Despite an uncertain outlook, banks in Hong Kong maintained the tradition and continued handing out red envelopes to staff for the Year of the Rat.
Among the sector’s major employers in Hong Kong, HSBC topped the ranks for amount per ‘lai see’ packet at HK$500 ($64) for each of its nearly 20,000 staff – a total of some $1.3 million. While maintaining the monetary aspect of the tradition, HSBC will opt for digital transferals rather than the customary packets.
«We believe lai see is an appropriate channel to express our gratitude to the staff for their hard work throughout the year,» according to an «SCMP» report citing an internal email from Diana Cesar, HSBC’s Hong Kong office head.
Smaller Amount
Elsewhere, other banks are also maintaining tradition, albeit at a smaller amount. Bank of China (Hong Kong) said it planned to hand its employees HK$200 ($26) each through digital transferrals. Hang Seng did not disclose the amount it would give but said it remains unchanged from last year. Bank of East Asia said it would give HK$50 ($6.4) of lai see to staff this year.
Local lenders aside, foreign firms have also followed suit to continue the Lunar New Year custom. A spokesperson for UBS said it would give out the same amount of lai see as last year through red packets made of environmentally-friendly paper. U.S. asset manager Franklin Templeton will also do the same in addition to an annual celebratory gathering.
