1.
Annex B
Criteria for Authorization (Revised)
Licensed bank : overseas applicants
(a)
(b)
(c)
Upon application, licences will normally be granted by the Governor in Council under section 16 (1) of the Banking Ordinance to banks incorporated outside Hong Kong which satisfy the following criteria
(i)
(ii)
-
incorporation in countries the supervisory authorities of which ("the home authorities") have established, or are actively working to establish, the necessary capabilities to meet the minimum
standards
for supervision of international banks recommended by the Basle Committee;
consent of the home authorities has been obtained for the establishment of a branch in Hong Kong;
(iii) total assets (less contra items) in excess of based on the footings of the whole of which the applicant is a member
(iv)
US$16 billion
banking group
(this figure to be reviewed annually);
availability
of some acceptable form of
reciprocity to Hong Kong banks.
Licences
may also be granted even though criterion (a) (iii) is not fulfilled. In these exceptional cases, licences will only be granted where -
(i)
(ii)
the applicant is of undoubted standing;
granting a licence to the applicant would serve Hong Kong's interests as
a broad based international financial centre taking account of the representation in Hong Kong by banks from the applicant bank's country.
A licence will be subject to the following conditions
(i)
the bank may maintain offices to which customers have access for the purpose of any business, including banking business,
in only one
building.
In this context the word office
includes any automated teller machine or similar terminal device which provides facilities to customers of the bank; and