Livi Bank becomes Hong Kong’s fourth licensed virtual lender to hit the market and it is taking a slightly differentiated launch strategy.
Backed by Bank of China (Hong Kong) and e-commerce giant JD.com, Livi Bank official opens for business today – the fourth out of eight licensed virtual banks in the city to launch.
The launch will be accompanied by cash rewards and promotions including a HK$100 ($13) cash reward upon successful registration and another $13 for every new customer invited to register thereafter for a maximum reward of up to $130, according to Livi chief executive David Sun Dawei in a statement.
Different Lure
All of the other three virtual banks that have already kicked off thus far have launch strategies focused on client acquisition via attractive rates. But Livi will pursue a different path, placing greater emphasis on its electronic payment system.
In partnership with card payment firm UnionPay, this will quickly enable transactions simply by scanning QR codes on a cellphone. Upon transacting with the UnionPay QR code, users can also shake their phone for cash rewards – «shake shake» rewards – with up to three attempts per day.
Rate-Based Strategy
Elsewhere, pure economics has been the primary impetus to lure new customers.
WeLab, the third and most recent virtual bank to launch, said it would offer 4.5 percent interest rate to big and small depositors alike. Xiaomi-backed Airstar also offered competitive loan rates as low as 2.99 percent and deposit rates as high as 3.6 percent.
ZA Bank, which launched earlier in 2019, offered relatively less attractive rates – up to 2.2 percent for 12-month deposits – but accepted deposits as low as $1, partially in an effort to boost financial inclusion.
