HKMA launches one-stop SME platform to help Hong Kong’s small businesses cope with challenges
- HKMA’s platform is part of a slew of measures announced recently to help SMEs cope with the challenges of locals heading across the border for shopping and dining
- The HKMA’s measures are vital and will help SMEs cope with the current economic climate, retail sector lawmaker Peter Shiu says
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) has launched a one-stop SME information platform on its website as part of its ongoing efforts to help small and medium-sized enterprises affected by changes in consumer and tourist spending patterns.
The platform provides information on SME lending services offered by 11 major banks including HSBC, Standard Chartered, Bank of China (Hong Kong), SME service hotlines and loan products such as trade financing and unsecured overdrafts.
“We hope that the platform can make it easier for SMEs to shop around so that they can compare and choose among loan products offered by different banks and increase their bargaining power,” said Eddie Yue Wai-man, CEO of HKMA, in a statement on Monday.
Hong Kong has around 340,000 SMEs, accounting for 98 per cent of the city’s businesses and employing 45 per cent of the private-sector workforce, according to the government, which defines an SME as a non-manufacturing firm with fewer than 50 employees or a manufacturing firm with fewer than 100 employees.
The platform is the latest in a series of measures announced last month by the HKMA together with the Banking Sector SME Lending Coordination Mechanism.
The mechanism, established by the HKMA and 11 participating banks in 2019, rolled out several rounds of relief measures during the Covid-19 pandemic. The lenders granted a combined HK$1.2 trillion (US$153.8 billion) worth of payment holidays and other forms of relief to alleviate the cash-flow pressure of 19,000 SMEs, Yue said.
The measures announced last month marked another step in helping SMEs navigate challenging market conditions as many Hongkongers travel to mainland China to dine and shop, leaving local shops and restaurants with fewer customers.
Hongkongers made more than 1.5 million outbound trips during the first three days of the Easter holiday, nearly five times the number of arrivals in the same period, government data showed.
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“This change has brought varying degrees of challenges and opportunities to SMEs in Hong Kong. Some retailers and restaurants have benefited while others have seen a decline in business,” Yue said. “In this complex and ever-changing economic environment, some SMEs may be facing greater operating pressure.”
Retail sector lawmaker Peter Shiu Ka-fai said the HKMA’s measures are vital and will help SMEs cope with these challenges.
“Many SMEs, including restaurants and retailers, are struggling as the post-Covid recovery is worse than expected in Hong Kong,” he said. “The HKMA’s new platform will help SMEs know about the funding support they can get.”
Since last month, all 11 banks in the SME lending coordination mechanism have introduced fee waivers and other concessions, with nine offering unsecured loan products to improve their cash flow, Yue said.
The HKMA will work closely with the banking and commercial sectors to introduce the remaining measures that were announced last month but have not yet been implemented. These include banks giving customers a transition period of at least six months for credit limit adjustments.
Other measures include giving preapproved payment holidays to support customers facing difficulties and making it easy for SMEs to switch banks for lending.
