Hello GeoExpat Folks!
I got caught up in recent KYC (Know Your Customer) and HK ID requirement problem - and honestly I cannot wrap my head around it because I hear so many different truths from different sources... So here we go:
1. I have set up a limited company in HK, though now I have a hard time with opening a bank account in HK. My company is a start-up.
HSBC has bluntly rejected me without giving me the right to receive any feedback. - even though i faxed/emailed them plenty of extra documents that they asked for (CV, stamped proof of working for my previous employer etc.)
For the whole meeting I basically had to prove them that i'm not a "lamb" - that I'm not there for money laundering etc. This kind of attitude was a shock to me. In this life there's not many occasions that one can feel so humiliated. (sic)
CITIbank said that I cannot get an account with them because my company has been registered just two months ago, and their rules say that the company has to be open for 2 YEARS. After further pressure from me they have taken my application for the processing ( will know the result in 2 weeks).
CITI has emphasized that they have to make sure that my company is a "real business", not a "dot com". (sic)
Hang Seng. I'm still waiting for their decision, but the rep that was interviewing me said that I probably will get rejected because of not having a HKid. I was told that the best way to get a hassle-free account is to marry a local or let a person with HK id enter my company and receive 30% shares. (sic)
----------
The whole situation is ridiculous. It's either chicken-egg problem where I can not do business without the account or cannot get the business account without doing business OR just rejection for sake of rejection and the fact that i'm not convincing enough in proving that i'm not a "lamb" ( pun intended to these "Know Your Customer" rules where I feel that i'm being accused of being a bad guy and I am a bad guy until I prove them wrong.)
Any ideas how to tackle this problem? I'm a EU citizen with a Polish Passport. Residency is in UK. Business will be done mostly from the mainland China.
I have supplied them with plenty of documents, company internal documents, company's website, our agents' business cards, my CV, stamped letter from previous employer. Damn, even always say that if they need any other proof/document then I will get it in no time!
My explanation is like the reps who do the interviewing do not really know what KYC officers above check for. Could any elaborate if this way of thinking isn't flawed?
Any help appreciated. Please join into the discussion, and leave some tips for the others, as after serious few-days googling there's not enough info out there.
best regards,
Daniel