Note issue smacks of a commercial gimmick

A currency is the lifeblood of an economy. Its issuance and circulation are serious matters, not to be tinkered with for frivolous or commercial purposes. The HK$150 commemorative banknotes to be issued by Standard Chartered Bank mainly serve the purpose of celebrating its 150th anniversary. The occasion is, no doubt, a big one for the bank, but not for the majority of Hong Kong people.

Producing legal tender to celebrate an occasion of national significance - such as the 10th anniversary of Hong Kong's handover or the 60th anniversary of the nation's founding - may be justifiable. But a commercial bank's birthday does not rise to that level of common interest or public celebration. Standard Chartered could easily have produced commemorative items such as gold coins for the occasion, but it has chosen to exploit the privilege it enjoys as a note-issuing bank to create the gimmick of legal tender notes in the weird denomination of HK$150.

Most, if not all, buyers will purchase the notes - which have been nicely designed - as collector's items because they are being sold for more than their face value. They have been approved by the government and the Monetary Authority; and it is good that the bank plans to give any profit it makes from the sales to charities. Even so, it may easily be perceived to have acted irresponsibly.

Unlike most economies where governments or central banks function as their own mints, Hong Kong has used commercial banks to issue notes. This has to do with the city's peculiar financial history. For a long time, HSBC used to function as the de facto central bank and has been the city's traditional note issuer. That role has expanded to include Standard Chartered and the Bank of China, while the Monetary Authority produces the new plastic HK$10 notes.

This is a solemn function. The issuing of banknotes as legal tender deserves to be treated seriously, not commercially exploited.