BOC Hong Kong's Role: BOC Hong Kong announced its assistance to the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) in issuing HKD4 billion bonds, continuing its role as a joint lead underwriter for the second consecutive year.

Bond Details: The bond issuance has a size of HKD4 billion, a term of 3 years, and an interest rate of 2.79%.

Privatization of Hang Seng Bank: Shareholders have approved the privatization of Hang Seng Bank, leading to its delisting on January 27, which aligns with JPMorgan's expectations despite the earlier completion date.

Positive Outlook for HSBC Holdings: JPMorgan views the privatization as beneficial for HSBC Holdings, allowing for better management guidance on synergies and an improvement in its CET1 ratio.

Market Predictions: Citi has raised HSBC Holdings' target price to $138.3, forecasting a return on tangible equity (RoTE) of 19-20% for 2027-28.

Constructive View on Hong Kong Banking: JPMorgan maintains a positive outlook on the Hong Kong banking sector, highlighting HSBC Holdings and Standard Chartered as top picks due to a strong stock market and recovering real estate market.

HSBC's Deposit Rate Change: HSBC has reduced its six-month HKD time deposit rate by 30 basis points from 2.4% to 2.1%, making it the lowest among Hong Kong's major banks.

Comparison with Other Banks: Hang Seng Bank and Standard Chartered maintain their six-month time deposit rates at 2.4%, while BOC Hong Kong offers a rate of 2.2%.

BOC Hong Kong's Digital Expansion: BOC Hong Kong has announced that its Vientiane branch in Laos is now connected to the digital RMB cross-border payment platform, becoming one of the first overseas direct participants in this system.

Laos Joins Digital RMB Network: With this connection, Laos becomes the second Southeast Asian country to officially integrate into the digital RMB cross-border payment system.

HKMA Expands RMB Business Facility: The Hong Kong Monetary Authority has increased the quota for the RMB Business Facility to RMB100 billion, expanding the list of participating banks to 40 starting from Phase 2.

Standard Chartered's Competitive Loans: Since the implementation of Phase 2 on December 1, Standard Chartered Hong Kong has begun offering competitive CNH loans to various corporate clients, including Cheongfuli (Hong Kong) Company.

HSBC's Utilization of Quota: HSBC has taken the lead in using the new quota, providing RMB1.4 billion in operating capital loans to a subsidiary of a Chinese listed company engaged in overseas markets.

BOC Hong Kong Promotes e-CNY: BOC Hong Kong is actively promoting the use of e-CNY in cross-border transactions to enhance regional financial market access.