People in the legal profession pointed out that it is risky to change stores in Hong Kong without paying much attention to the legality of customers' funds. Some old bankers often need remittances, so they should be taught not to be greedy, especially when Hong Kong people buy houses in the Mainland. As it involves a large remittance, it is best to find a reputable institution such as a bank to maintain a stable quota.
Miss Li, who decided to buy a house in Hengqin, Zhuhai last year, told the reporter of Ta Kung Pao that customs clearance could not be carried out due to the epidemic situation. The developer initially allowed the reservation to be delayed, but after half a year, the owner was finally asked to pay a large order. She has friends who do cross-border remittance business, so she entrusted her friends to remit 500,000 yuan to the developer at the beginning of the month.
Looking for a store to close down, Hong Kong businessmen lost millions.
Miss Li pointed out that she didn't want to use this remittance service because she felt there was always risk. She once heard that a friend in the jewelry industry remitted RMB 6,543.8+0,000 from a local exchange shop to Shenzhen, but after waiting for 48 hours, the money was still not remitted to her personal account in the Mainland. Later, she made a claim to the exchange shop, and the staff of the exchange shop said that there was something wrong with the money and the remittance was frozen. Finally, because many funds were frozen and could not repay customers, the exchange shop had to close down.
Miss Li mentioned that this remittance company can provide cross-border remittance services immediately. She paid the house price by remittance twice, the first remittance was100000, and the second remittance was 500000. Fortunately, the money has not been frozen twice. However, she pointed out that cross-border remittance should not look for retail stores, because problematic accounts will be frozen, and because it involves assisting in money laundering, it is necessary to look for reputable retail stores.
Some shops advertised that they would arrive on the same day.
In fact, it is still unknown when Guangdong and Hong Kong will be able to clear customs under the epidemic, and exchange shops that provide cross-border remittance services have mushroomed. A few days ago, the reporter visited Hennessy Road in Wan Chai and Gippery Street in Sheung Wan. Within a short distance of 100 meter, there are more than a dozen shops looking for change. Some shops are marked with the words "domestic remittance will arrive immediately", "remittance will arrive on the same day", "domestic remittance express" and "cash can be withdrawn from Hong Kong account two hours after counting".
The reporter pretended to be a customer and went to a change shop to ask. The staff pointed out that local banks can only remit tens of thousands of yuan to the mainland every day, and the procedures are complicated, so many Hong Kong people and mainlanders will "help" find a change shop to remit money abroad. Later, when the reporter inquired that he wanted to remit money to the mainland developer to pay the house price, he only said that he could only remit money to his personal account, and he had to submit personal information, and he could never remit money to the developer's account. Another employee even said: "There is no handling fee for remittance of 500,000 yuan. We only earn the remittance difference. It will take three to four days for the exchange shop outside to get the account. We only need to wait one day to complete the remittance. "
Illegal remittance can be sentenced to five years in prison.
According to a businessman familiar with the two places, due to the restrictions of formal remittance, some people will take risks to send money through intermediaries and "underground money houses". According to the Regulations of People's Republic of China (PRC) on Foreign Exchange Control, cross-border remittance must be approved by the State Administration of Foreign Exchange, but at present, no Hong Kong change shop has been approved, in other words, the related services are illegal. He pointed out that it is legal for you to send money abroad in Hong Kong, but it is illegal to send money to the mainland. Mainland law enforcement agencies have the right to point out that the account held by the remitter is used for money laundering or illegal money laundering, and the remittance of Hong Kong people will be frozen at any time.
Lu Weixiong, a practising barrister, said when questioned by Ta Kung Pao that according to mainland laws, if an individual illegally remits money abroad, once convicted, the redeemer may be fined 500,000 to 2 million yuan, and may also be investigated for criminal responsibility. As for finding another new store, it will be dealt with as illegal business operation according to the Criminal Law of People's Republic of China (PRC) and the Criminal Law of People's Republic of China (PRC), and the person in charge can be sentenced to a maximum of five years' imprisonment.
He explained that because most money exchange shops in Hong Kong do not consider the legality of the source of funds, funds may be illegally obtained from illegal gambling, illegal fund-raising and telecommunication network fraud, which has violated the money laundering regulations. While Hong Kong people buy houses or real estate agents in Hong Kong, they just hope that the exchange rate cost will be as flat as possible, and they will not consider finding the source of funds for changing stores. Looking for the store itself is not clear about the source of funds, and the mainland account is frozen, which will not help solve it.
Extended reading:
The daily limit for remittance to mainland bank accounts is RMB 80,000.
Store changing industry existed as early as19th century. At first, it mainly benefited some foreign businessmen in Hong Kong and provided convenience for local businessmen in China who needed to do business with the British. It was not until the early 1980s that banks in Hong Kong began to handle RMB deposit business and RMB remittance business for the Mainland (that is, issuing Hong Kong dollars in Hong Kong and receiving foreign exchange certificates in the Mainland). In the late 1980s, due to the devaluation of RMB and the large negative interest rate, Hong Kong banks officially closed the RMB deposit business of 1989.
Until March 1993, Hong Kong Baosheng Bank started RMB cash exchange business in Hong Kong, and gradually developed to all banks engaged in foreign currency exchange business to provide RMB exchange. Later, Baosheng Bank was allowed by the relevant state departments to transport RMB banknotes to Shenzhen for new ones. At the same time, Baosheng Bank also opened the RMB residual banknote exchange business for other banks in Hong Kong, which was closed on 1998. But in the same year, Hsu Brothers Exchange Group stood out as the first chain exchange company in Hong Kong. Since then, the concept of changing stores has become popular in Hong Kong and the Mainland.
Since 2003, with the opening of free travel in Hong Kong, a large number of mainland tourists have visited Hong Kong, and the business of finding and changing stores has mushroomed, and shops can be found in all districts.
The People's Bank of China, together with the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Commerce, the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission, the China Banking Regulatory Commission and the State Administration of Foreign Exchange, jointly issued the Notice on Further Optimizing the Cross-border RMB Policy to Support the Stability of Foreign Trade and Foreign Investment, which includes relaxing the funds of the same name remitted by Hong Kong and Macao residents to mainland banks for consumption, and will take effect on February 4.
It is reported that domestic banks can open personal RMB bank settlement accounts for Hong Kong and Macao residents, which can be used to receive funds remitted from accounts of the same name with a daily limit of RMB 80,000 per person in Hong Kong and Macao. Domestic banks should ensure that the use of remitted funds conforms to the current regulations, and the remitted funds can only be used for domestic consumption expenditures, and financial products such as securities, financial derivatives and asset management products are not allowed to be purchased.