HSBC to cut fees, offer rebates to boost struggling small Hong Kong firms

HONG KONG, Aug 28 (Reuters): HSBC said on Wednesday it will offer rebates and fee reductions for small and medium-sized companies in Hong Kong, as the city's economy struggles.

Hong Kong is on the verge of its first recession in a decade, weighed down by the prolonged US-China trade war and months of anti-government protests that have spread across the territory, disrupting traffic, scaring away tourists and paralyzing shopping areas.

HSBC, the biggest bank operating in Hong Kong, said it would offer a six-month interest rate rebate on loans approved under official financing and loan guarantee schemes for small and medium enterprises (SMEs), fee subsidies for applications for the financing guarantee scheme, and reductions in transaction fees for businesses using HSBC's mobile payment service.

The London-headquartered lender did not quantify how much the measures will cost it. It is the only large lender in Hong Kong to have come up with the measures recently.