Blame Washington not Beijing for problems opening a bank account
Political agitators like artist Ai Weiwei complain about difficulties when trying to open an account at HSBC, but the bank is simply following American rules
What do Ai Weiwei, Joshua Wong Chi-fung and Agnes Chow Ting have in common? It’s funny how political agitators like to round on poor HSBC and claim persecution when they can’t open a bank account in Hong Kong.
But really, it’s not Beijing you guys should complain about, but the United States – you know, your beloved country that you run to for free publicity and red-carpet treatment. The British-Hong Kong bank has been making it difficult for everyone – people and companies – to open new accounts. But no, it has nothing to do with political pressure from Beijing. It’s the result of worldwide compliance standards imposed by regulators in New York and Washington.
I hate big banks like HSBC as much as the next guy, and much prefer smaller local banks that usually offer a nicer personal touch. But the real issue is not even about Hong Kong or Beijing, but America, where regulators have come up with the perfect extortion-cum-cost-saving scheme.
Fine foreign banks billions of dollars for money laundering and aiding terrorism, then outsource monitoring and surveillance of drug smugglers and terrorists to those same banks. And then, Washington complains international banks so targeted are becoming too unfriendly to clients, especially American expatriates. The Americans could do it because every major global bank has to have a presence in the US.
Ai, Wong and Chow, you want to complain? Fly to Washington and make a fuss. See if those American politicians would still roll out the red carpet.