Supporting SMEs

The banking sector in Hong Kong has been supporting the development of SMEs of different industries. The Banking Sector SME Lending Coordination Mechanism (Mechanism) was established by the HKMA in October 2019. Participants include 11 banks that are most active in lending to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The Hong Kong Association of Banks (HKAB) and the HKMC Insurance Limited are also represented in the Mechanism. Since its establishment, the Mechanism has rolled out several rounds of relief measures for SME customers, including the Pre-approved Principal Payment Holiday Scheme, loan tenor extensions, and the conversion of trade financing lines into temporary overdraft facilities, which helped many SMEs tide over the difficult times during the COVID pandemic.

In March 2024, the Mechanism launched nine support measures, including banks not demanding early repayments from mortgage customers repaying on schedule, and not adjusting credit limit merely due to change in collateral value; and for certain cases warranting adjustment of credit limits, a transition period of at least six months should be given. These measures have assisted SMEs in obtaining bank financing and provided them with a better support for their continuous development and transformation.

Following the launch of the nine support measures, many SMEs have benefitted through, among others, principal moratorium and partial principal repayment, approved new credit applications and concessions on credit application fees, commitment fees and interest which help ease their financial burden.

The HKMA and the HKAB together established a joint Taskforce on SME Lending in August 2024 to further strengthen the related work at both the individual case and the industry levels, including setting up a mechanism to handle individual cases of SMEs encountering difficulties when obtaining bank financing, working out appropriate solutions for adoption across banks and enhancing communication among the HKMA, the banking industry and the commercial sector so as to understand the financing needs of SMEs in a more timely manner.

You may find information on SME lending services provided by different banks and other support measures offered by government-related organisations for SMEs in this one-stop platform.

Should you have any enquiries or comments about SME lending services, please contact the HKMA.