- More in line with regulatory requirements:
With increasing regulatory requirements, many start-up companies and SMEs may use personal bank accounts for business funds due to their size and convenience. However, banks in Hong Kong have strict regulatory requirements for suspicious money flows and anti-money laundering. When it comes to large money transactions and money transfers, the use of a personal account can be a concern for banks.
Large Transactions Raise Alarm for Banks: Banks are very sensitive to large transactions. In the event of an unusual transaction, the bank may ask the individual account holder to provide an explanation. Failure to provide a reasonable explanation may affect the Bank’s services and may even result in the freezing of the account or termination of the service.
Benefits of a corporate account: By opening an account in the name of your company, you can trade more smoothly and continue to enjoy banking services when faced with large amounts of money. Especially for small and medium-sized enterprises that need frequent capital flow in the early stage of entrepreneurship, corporate accounts are safer and less risky than using personal accounts.
- Tax filing is more convenient:
If you’re a one-person company, it may not be a big deal to manage your company’s expenses with a personal account. However, once a company needs to scale up, or open a physical storefront, it can be confusing to use the same person account to manage company expenses.
Manage company expenses:
Using the same person account to manage your company’s expenses can make it difficult to manage. When you need to scale your company or have multiple people managing your company’s finances, it becomes more difficult to distinguish between personal expenses and company expenses.
Payroll: If an employee is required to pay a salary, and the proof of payroll shows a personal account, it may lead to an investigation by the relevant authorities. This can have an impact on tax and other filing efforts for employers and employees.
Benefits of a company account: Opening a company account can make it easier to manage employee salaries, company expenses, etc., making tax filing and other related work more convenient and faster. With a corporate account, you can clearly separate your personal and company finances, contributing to clarity and transparency in managing and filing taxes.
- More banking services:
Opening a corporate account not only helps to reduce regulatory risk, but also allows you to apply for a number of different banking services, many of which are tailor-made for SMEs.
- – Preferential loans and credit cards: Corporate account customers can apply for preferential interest rate loans and corporate credit cards and other products from their banks, which are quite diverse.
- – Special services: In addition to loan and credit card services, corporate accounts also enjoy different services than personal accounts, such as the following services to help facilitate business:
- Banking services such as HKD and foreign currency remittance, autopay instructions (some charged, some waived)
- Money management services
- Free Payroll Service (Most Banks)
- Corporate Internet & Mobile Banking
- Connect to accounting, HR and payroll software to manage your company’s expenses
- Business Insurance Application Services and Offers
- Corporate investment services and offers
- Apply for a Payment Gateway offer
Quality banking services are invaluable for businesses to improve the efficiency of financial management and enjoy more financial conveniences.
