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| File shot by a Filipina who bragged on Facebook about involvement in money laundering |
Hong Kong authorities say they are taking new steps to counter scam and money laundering activities which have risen considerably over the past year.
The new measures will include police sharing with
banks the account and phone numbers, as well as e-mails associated with suspicious
bank accounts on its Scameter database.
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority, on the other hand,
will allow banks to flag suspicious accounts, and when money gets into them, to
either contact clients reminding them of risks, conduct further examination, or
ask police for help.
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| Basahin ang detalye! |
Subject to the passage of the Banking (Amendment)
Bill 2025 which has just passed a second reading at the Legislative Council,
local retail banks are also set to step up data sharing of suspicious accounts
and transactions by the end of the year.
The new measures were announced in the wake of a 12
percent rise in the number of scam cases last year compared to 2023. Nearly
45,000 such cases were reported, in which more than $9.1 billion was lost.
Police statistics also showed about 8,600 people
were arrested last year on suspicion of lending their bank accounts for money
laundering – a big number of them foreign domestic helpers – for a 44 percent
jump compared to last year.
HKMA executive director Raymond Chan said
at a press briefing today that the bank will continue to take steps to protect
the privacy of customers by limiting the data they share.
"Banks will only be
sharing client information in specific situations as the information can only
be used for detecting and preventing banned activities such as scams and money
laundering," he said.
Further, the data sharing will only take place on a designated and
confidential platform set up by the police.
Chan said the HKMA and the Police will issue guidelines to banks on the data sharing system, which they will also monitor rigorously.
A paper submitted to Legco last month said an information gap has allowed criminals to rapidly move and conceal illicit funds through the banking system.
For example, even after a bank has detected and taken action on an illicit transaction in an account, the criminals would often be able to continue their illegal activities by using mule accounts opened in another bank.
The lack of data sharing between the banks under the present mechanism has resulted in many such transactions getting through before the police are alerted to them.
Also at the press conference, police chief superintendent Kelly Cheng, said 251 people have been arrested in connection with more than 500 scam cases, as a result of joint operation with mainland authorities over several months last year.
The suspects who were mostly from the mainland were suspected of coming to Hong Kong to open stooge bank accounts before going back across the border.
