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TUESDAY, AUGUST 7, 1979
GRANTING OF BANKING LICENCES SUSPENDED FOR SIX MONTHS
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THE FINANCIAL SECRETARY, MR. PHILIP HADDON-CAVE ANNOUNCED THAT THE GRANTING OF BANKING LICENCES IS BEING SUSPENDED FROM TODAY (TUESDAY) FOR A PERIOD NOT LESS THAN SIX MONTHS.
THE FOLLOWING IS THE FULL TEXT OF MR. HADDON-CAVE'S STATEMENT:
+ON MARCH 15, 1978 ANNOUNCED THAT AFTER LENGTHY CONSIDERATION THE GOVERNMENT HAD DECIDED TO EASE THE LONG- STANDING MORATORIUM ON THE ISSUE OF NEW BANKING LICENCES UNDER THE BANKING ORDINANCE- I SAID THAT FAVOURABLE CONSIDERATION WOULD BE GIVEN TO APPLICATIONS FOR BANK ING LICENCES RECEIVED FROM FOREIGN BANKS WHICH MET THREE CRITERIA,
+IN ACCORDANCE WITH THIS NEW POLICY, 41 BANKS HAVE BEEN GRANTED A LICENCE TO OPEN A BRANCH IN HONG KONG. THIS NUMBER
INCLUDES SEVEN BANKS TO WHOM LICENCES WERE GRANTED BY THE GOVERNOR-IN-COUNCIL TODAY (TUESDAY), OF THE NEWLY LICENSED BANKS 29 HAVE ALREADY BEGUN TO OPERATE IN HONG KONG, WHILE THE REMAINDER ARE EXPECTED TO START FUNCTIONING IN THE NEXT SIX MONTHS OR SO.
+THESE 41 NEWLY LICENSED BANKS COME FROM 12 DIFFERENT COUNTRIES: THIS WIDE GEOGRAPHICAL SPREAD, ADDED TO THE COUNTRIES REPRESENTED BY BANKS ALREADY IN HONG KONG, CONTRIBUTES SUBSTANTIALLY TO HONG KONG'S GROWING STATUS AS AN INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL CENTRE. BANKS FROM 20 DIFFERENT COUNTRIES, FROM ALL ROUND THE WORLD, NOW HAVE BRANCHES IN EONG KONG.
+THE NUMBER OF NEWLY LICENSED BANKS IS CLOSE TO THE NUMBER OF BANKS WHICH WERE THOUGHT TO BE POTENTIAL APPLICANTS AT THE TIME THE NEW POLICY WAS BEING DISCUSSED. FURTHERMORE, WITH THE PASSAGE OF TIME AND THE RAPID INCREASE IN THE GROWTH OF BANKS' BALANCE SHEETS OVER THE LAST TWO YEARS, AN INCREASING NUMBER OF BANKS ARE BECOMING ABLE TO MEET ALL THE CRITERIA LAID DOWN LAST YEAR.
+AFTER CAREFUL CONSIDERATION THE GOVERNMENT HAS NOW CONCLUDED THAT IT WOULD BE APPROPRIATE TO HAVE A TEMPORARY BREATHING SPACE BEFORE LICENSING ANY FURTHER BANKS, SO THAT THE CRITERIA TO BE APPLIED TO FUTURE APPLICATIONS CAN BE REVIEWED. THE GRANT OF BANKING LICENCES IS, THEREFORE, SUSPENDED WITH EFFECT FROM TODAY, FOR A PERIOD OF NOT LESS THAN SIX MONTHS. THIS SUSPENSION IS, HOWEVER, SUBJECT TO CERTAIN EXCEPTIONS, SUCH AS THOSE BANKS WHOSE APPLICATIONS HAVE BEEN RECEIVED BY THE GOVERNMENT, BUT HAVE NOT YET BEEN DETERMINED BY THE GOVERNOR-IN-COUNCIL. FURTHER APPLICATIONS FOR BANKING LICENCES WILL NOT BE CONSIDERED UNTIL AFTER THE PERIOD OF SUSPENSION.+
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