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then concluded that for obvious reasons this was not in the best interest of Hong Kong and we embarked on the course which ends here this afternoon.
4.
It is a course that could not have been taken without the full cooperation of the ad hoc group, to whose major and very knowledgeable contributions I pay tribute. I think that they will also wish me to thank the others involved including the Office of the Commissioner of Banking, the Monetary Affairs Branch, the Law Draftsman, the Hongkong Association of Banks, the DTC Association, the two Advisory Committees, the Hong Kong Society of Accountants and many other outside institutions. I cannot remember any bill which has been the product of so much consultation and hard work.
5.
This
The amendments to the Bill do not affect the substance of the new policies and approaches embodied in it. All agree that these are necessary to strengthen prudential supervision and thus to promote a stable system and a degree of protection for depositors. consensus reflects the result of the extensive consultation before the Bill was drafted. Most of the amendments cover practical, technical, and drafting matters; indeed, a number of them-relate-to-provisions-- that are carried over from the two existing Ordinances which the Bill will replace. I will now describe briefly the main amendments that I will move in the Committee Stage.
Clause 2(1): Definition of deposits
6.
The existing DTC Ordinance defines deposits in
Under our a way involving only positive interest.
present linked exchange rate system, zero or even negative interest rate for Hong Kong dollar deposits is not inconceivable. The Bill therefore extends the definition of deposits to cover this possibility. As a