Suspicious fraudulent website: www.facbltd.com

The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) wishes to alert members
of the public to a suspected fraudulent website with the domain
name "www.facbltd.com". The
website is operated by an alleged "First Atlantic Chartered Bank
Limited" which claims that its head office is in the UK and it
offers various banking services in Hong Kong, China and
Singapore.

The public should be aware that the alleged "First Atlantic
Chartered Bank Limited" is not authorized under the Banking
Ordinance to carry on banking business or the business of taking
deposits in Hong Kong, nor does it have the approval to establish a
local representative office.

The HKMA has verified with the UK financial regulator that
"First Atlantic Chartered Bank Limited" is not registered with them
in any capacity. The HKMA has already referred the case to the Hong
Kong Police Force for further investigation and to take appropriate
action in relation to the website. Anyone who has dealings with the
alleged "First Atlantic Chartered Bank Limited" should contact any
local Police Station or the Commercial Crime Bureau of the Hong
Kong Police Force at 2860 5012.

Given the global nature of the Internet, members of the public
are reminded to verify the status of any organisation making use of
the Internet to solicit deposits from the public. A list of
authorized institutions is available on the HKMA's website (www.hkma.gov.hk). Members of the
public may also check the status of any entity in Hong Kong which
solicits deposits from the public with the HKMA by calling its
public enquiry hotline 2878 8222.

For further enquiries, please contact:
Kevin Ip, Manager (Press), at 2878 1687 or
Thomas Chan, Senior Manager (Press), at 2878 1480

Hong Kong Monetary Authority
21 January 2004