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Hong Kong’s banks say they have adequate cash to meet demand, even as calls circulate online for protesters to empty out ATMs
- City’s lenders said they have contingency plans in place, monitoring situation
- Hong Kong’s Financial Secretary said the city’s banking system is ‘very solid’ and has ‘adequate liquidity’
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Hong Kong’s biggest banks said they have enough currency notes on hand to handle any extraordinary increase in demand for cash, as calls circulated online for protesters to empty out automated teller machines (ATMs) to disrupt the banking system in Asia’s financial hub.
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HSBC, the largest of the city’s three currency-issuing banks, said it “has sufficient supply of banknotes and is committed to supporting its customers and the smooth operation of the financial system in Hong Kong,” according to a bank spokeswoman.
Bank of East Asia, DBS, OCBC Wing Hang Bank and Hang Seng Bank said they have put contingency plans in place, and are keeping their eyes on withdrawals via their teller machines.
The call-to-action is the latest in a series of attempts to disrupt Hong Kong’s infrastructure, after protesters occupied the airport earlier this week, forcing the airfield to cancel flights as many as 1,000 flights over two straight days. In late June, protesters disrupted services at key stations on the city’s subway network, as they stepped up their campaign to oppose a controversial extradition bill.
Even though the unpopular bill was declared “dead” by the city’s Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor, her reluctance to formally withdraw it has sparked 11 weeks of persistent protest rallies that have deteriorated into street clashes with police. Demonstrations have evolved into complaints about the city’s government and the police response to the protests, involving tear gas and rubber bullets in violent clashes with some hardened groups of demonstrators.
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