Hong Kong lawmaker Wu Jiezhuang: Most Hong Kong-based Web3 companies have difficulty opening bank accounts in Hong Kong

August 8th news, the Hong Kong Legislative Council Web3 and virtual asset development subcommittee chairperson Wu Jiezhuang, this month to the Web 3.0 industry survey, today (8th) announced the results of the survey, found that most of the Web 3.0 companies settled in Hong Kong, it is difficult to open a bank account in Hong Kong, among which when opening a virtual bank account, the company's shareholders or directors are required to come to Hong Kong many times, require fixed deposits, high handling fees, etc., it takes nearly half a year to successfully open an account. Wu Jiezhuang said that opening an account in a virtual bank has been easier than traditional banks, but these Web 3.0 companies are still unable to open an account after a long delay, which is undoubtedly fatal to their business in Hong Kong. It is recommended that the government and banks relax the conditions when feasible.
In the past few days, Wu Jiezhuang's team has interviewed more than 120 Web 3.0 companies that have settled in Hong Kong after 2022. 83% of the companies' industries involve virtual assets; 95% have opened accounts with virtual banks in Hong Kong. Nearly 70% of the companies have been asked by the virtual bank for company shareholders or directors to come to Hong Kong many times, and 60% have been required to have fixed deposits. 54% of companies can open accounts for half a year or more, and nearly 20% can open accounts between two months and five months. Three percent were rejected.