Weeks after Hong Kong chief executive Carrie Lam called on local officials not to allow financial inconveniences to deter them from serving, several other sanctioned colleagues have come out to express discontent and illustrate more unwanted nuisances.
Three of the 25 sanctioned officials anonymously shared their situation in banking – with varying experiences – alongside changes to their day-to-day life, according to an «SCMP» report.
This follows the first public revelations about life after sanctions by Lam who said that she faced inconveniences such as holding «piles of cash at home» as she is unable to access banking services.
According to the report, affected officials currently have the choice of receiving their salaries in physical cash, transferring it to a family member’s bank account or allowing the government to retain part of the pay until required for use.
Wealth Restructuring
One of the officials said he chose not only to transfer his salary to his wife’s bank account but his entire life savings following the sanction announcements.
Two days after he was first named, an American financial institution informed him by mail that he no longer had access to his credit card. Thereafter, multiple banks also reached out, «advising» him to close his accounts. Now, he relies on his wife to pay phone bills, pick up tabs for shopping and dining and pay either in cash or popular local payment smart card Octopus (limited to a maximum stored value of $129).
«Under the sanctions, [financial institutions] are also victims and they had no choice but to close my accounts,» he said, sympathizing with the industry’s woes despite the fact that the closures themselves are in direct violation of Article 29 in the national security law (NSL). «It is ridiculous. We implement the [NSL] in Hong Kong to punish lawbreakers, but we are being sanctioned by another country.»
Varying Timelines
While another official also admitted he was barred from banking services, a third official revealed a more flexible experience.
He said that he faced restrictions initially only to online banking, overseas remittance and credit card services until October when he was asked to close his accounts after the State Department issued another warning to financial institutions.
The banks involved were not disclosed but all three officials said a mainland-affiliated lender in the city was involved, adding that they believed that all financial institutions with operations or business in the U.S. were affected.
Japanese Property Hurdles
Affected officials are set to face even more financial troubles in the region as the Japanese government officially confirmed that financial groups are required to comply with U.S. sanctions, adding that foreign rules could be stricter than those in the country.
The statement was issued in response to a written question by Jin Matsubara parliament member of the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan and ex-chairman of the National Public Safety Commission who is a vocal supporter of Hong Kong’s pro-democracy movement.
«This now means that U.S. sanctions will be automatically applied in Japan,» Matsubara explained in a separate «SCMP» report. «This means they will have great difficulty if they want to sell real estate that they hold in Japan. I believe this will infuriate the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party, who are enormously rich and probably investing in Japan.»
U.S. Treasury: No Non-Compliance Yet
According to the U.S. Treasury, no foreign financial institutions have been found to have «knowingly conducted a significant transaction with a foreign person» named by the U.S. State Department for undermining Hong Kong’s freedoms. Separately, a report of these violations will be completed within 60 days.
In response to the latest decision to expand the target list, China made retaliations of its own with the revocation of visa-free entry of American diplomats traveling to Hong Kong or Macau and sanctions on U.S. officials alongside their immediate family members without disclosing names.
