Hong Kong’s Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) has charged three former HSBC relationship managers with accepting bribes to help customers bypass queues when opening bank accounts.

The accused are Chan Fu-kwan, 32, Mike Chan Wai-pak, 29, and Bernie Yau Kai-lung, 33. All three worked at HSBC’s Causeway Bay branch at the time of the alleged offences and were formally charged on Wednesday, July 29, 2026.

An ICAC investigation found that Chan Fu-kwan allegedly accepted bribes ranging from HK$1,000 (US$127) to HK$1,200 per referred customer from an insurance agent to facilitate account openings. He also reportedly referred some customers to Mike Chan and Bernie Yau, offering bribes of HK$300 to HK$500 per customer to them for assistance. Chan is said to have accepted a total of HK$35,000 to fast-track these account openings, allowing clients to skip branch queues entirely.

The three face a total of six bribery charges related to these allegations.

Sources

South China Morning Post World, "ICAC charges 3 former HSBC managers over accepting bribes to fast-track accounts," July 30, 2026, by Eric Jiang. Read more