In response to rising demand from mainland China, HSBC is launching a pilot to extend services to seven days a week at three branches in Hong Kong.
HSBC will pilot a special operation to keep three branches in Hong Kong open for seven days a week, according to a statement. The three branches will extend their banking hours to 5pm on Saturdays open from 2pm to 5pm on Sundays.
The branches in the pilot include wealth management centers that serve HSBC’s affluent banking segments, such as the Jade offering which targets individuals with a minimum account size of $1 million.
Rising Traffic
Following Hong Kong’s reopening, HSBC has seen significantly increased usage of branch services from overseas Hong Kongers and non-local residents.
In February, daily average branch traffic of non-local residents and hotline inquiries about account opening doubled, compared to the previous month. The number of non-local customers who are new to the bank also returned to the monthly average seen in the first half of 2019.
Mainland Demand
Rising branch traffic at HSBC is primarily attributable to demand from mainland China.
According to a survey by the bank earlier this year, handling personal financial matters was the second highest priority for post-reopening visits to Hong Kong from the mainland at 60 percent, behind leisure travel. 98 percent of mainland China residents overall are keen on opening accounts or holding investment products in the city.
In addition to extended branch services and staff training, HSBC will cater to increased demand by growing of the international banking services and insurance teams that serves mainland China customers by 40 percent via temporary staff redeployment and new hires.
