To open a corporate bank account in Hong Kong, prepare your incorporation documents, business registration certificate, ownership details and a clear explanation of what the company does and where its money comes from. Once open, the Faster Payment System (FPS) lets customers pay instantly, and an invoice carrying your FPS details and number helps you match each receipt.
Banks in Hong Kong apply customer due diligence rules designed to prevent money laundering and terrorist financing, so opening an account is a review of the business as well as of its paperwork. Expect to supply the Certificate of Incorporation, the Business Registration Certificate, the articles of association, the latest annual return or incorporation form, and identity and address proof for directors, authorised signatories and anyone who owns or controls more than a quarter of the company.
The bank will also ask what the company sells, who its customers and suppliers are, in which countries it operates, how much it expects to move through the account each month and where its starting capital comes from. Vague answers cause delays. A one-page business summary with the company's activities, a sample contract or invoice, the website address and the expected counterparties lets the relationship manager complete the file faster.
Companies with overseas owners, trading-in-transit models or activities in higher-risk sectors may be asked for more documents or interviews, and the bank may require directors to visit a branch or complete a video call. Apply to more than one bank in parallel if the timing matters, and keep each bank's questions and your answers consistent.
Documents are rarely the only hurdle. Some banks also expect the directors to explain how the business is organised, who decides, and who will sign. Prepare a short organisation chart for companies with several owners or overseas parents, because a bank that cannot see the person at the top of the chain will not proceed.
Compare banks on what you will actually do: minimum balance, monthly account fees, the cost of overseas telegraphic transfers, multi-currency options, online banking limits and the number of authorised users. A trading company paying suppliers in US dollars or renminbi needs different features from a consultancy that is paid in Hong Kong dollars.
Set up dual authorisation where possible: one person prepares payments and another approves them. This is a simple control that also helps the auditor, who will look at who was able to move money. Keep the bank's mandate and the board resolution that authorised it in your corporate records.
Keep personal and business money apart. Paying business expenses from a director's personal account creates directors' loan entries and arguments at year-end; if it cannot be avoided, record each case with receipts.
Think about cut-off times and approval limits when choosing an online banking set-up. Payroll runs, supplier payments and tax payments often fall due on the same day, and a daily transfer limit that is too low turns a routine day into a call to the bank. If you issue cheques, ask about cheque books, deposit methods and how long a deposited cheque takes to clear before you promise a customer the money.
Accounts with low balances or little activity can attract monthly service charges or be reclassified by the bank, so ask about minimum balances before you leave a rarely used account open. A company that stops trading should close its accounts formally and keep the final statements for the seven-year record period.
The Faster Payment System is the real-time retail payment platform run by Hong Kong Interbank Clearing Limited. It works around the clock, handles Hong Kong dollar and renminbi payments and lets a payer send money using the recipient's registered mobile number, e-mail address or FPS identifier, instead of a bank account number. Most banks and many stored-value wallets support it, and business accounts can usually register an FPS identifier.
For a business the advantage is speed: a customer who pays by FPS can see the payment arrive in seconds, and the seller can release goods or confirm a booking. The weakness is information. A payment typically shows the payer's name, the amount and a short reference field, and customers often leave the reference empty or write something unhelpful.
Make the reference easy by telling the customer exactly what to enter, such as the invoice number. Put the FPS identifier, the account name and the instruction on every invoice, and repeat the instruction in the e-mail that carries the PDF. Consider a rule of one invoice per payment request, so partial payments and combined payments are easier to explain.
Reconciliation is easier if every outgoing document carries something unique that the customer can quote. The invoice number is the natural choice. When a payment arrives without it, search the bank statement by amount and date, and ask the customer to confirm. Record the match in your books with the date the money arrived, because the date of receipt is what you and the auditor rely on.
Aged unpaid invoices need a routine. Set a weekly review of the statement against open invoices, and send a polite reminder before the due date and another shortly after it. Escalate to a phone call when a larger sum is late; for small debts that remain unpaid, the Small Claims Tribunal deals with money claims up to a statutory limit, which is currently HK$75,000.
If you accept cheques or card payments in addition to FPS, record each channel on the invoice. Fees on cards and cheque handling differ, and your accountant will want to know which channel each receipt came through.
4invoices lets you issue PDF invoices and keep them in an invoice archive. You enter your FPS details and payment instructions on the invoice yourself. It does not import bank statements, it does not match payments automatically and it does not connect to a bank or to the FPS network.
4notify sends SMS and e-mail messages from your account. You can use it for a payment reminder whose wording you compose, sent when you decide. It does not trigger by itself when an invoice becomes overdue. Reconciliation against the bank statement is a task for your team or accountant.
FPS credits show only the payer’s name and amount, leaving the accounts team to guess which invoice was paid.
Add your FPS details and an invoice number to each PDF invoice and ask customers to quote it as the payment reference. Match credits to invoices yourself from your bank statement; 4invoices does not import statements or match payments.
Chasing late payers depends on someone remembering, so debtor days keep growing.
Send reminders to late payers yourself by SMS or e-mail from 4notify, using text you write. They are not triggered automatically by ageing.
Typically the Certificate of Incorporation, Business Registration Certificate, articles of association, the incorporation form or latest annual return, identification and address proof for directors and signatories, and details of anyone with more than a quarter ownership or control. The bank also asks what the company does, who its customers are and how much it expects to transact. Requirements vary by bank and by risk profile.
Banks decline or delay when the business purpose, the source of funds or the counterparties are unclear, when ownership is complex or when activities touch higher-risk sectors or jurisdictions. Prepare a clear summary with contracts and invoices, answer questions consistently across banks and be patient with follow-up requests. A refusal is not recorded publicly, but each bank keeps its own file.
Yes, if your bank account supports FPS and you register a mobile number, e-mail address or FPS identifier for it. Payments in Hong Kong dollars or renminbi arrive in seconds around the clock. Put the FPS details and the invoice number on your invoice and ask customers to quote the number as the payment reference.
Search the bank statement by amount and date, compare it to open invoices, and confirm with the customer by e-mail or phone. Record the match in the books against the right invoice and keep the evidence of the confirmation. To reduce the problem, state the reference you want on every invoice and in the covering e-mail.
No. 4invoices produces PDF invoices and stores them in an invoice archive. You type your own bank or FPS payment details onto the invoice. It does not import statements, does not match payments to invoices automatically and does not connect to a bank or to the FPS network. Reconciliation remains a task for your team or accountant.
PDF invoices and SMS or e-mail you write yourself; matching is done from your bank statement.
