One of the benefits of having a company in Hong Kong is the possibility to enter Chinese markets and manufactures to trade worldwide. On top of that your Hong Kong company can become a gateway to Chinese consumers and digital services.

It is a well-known fact that China is a closed country in terms of Internet freedom. The famous Chinese firewall bans all overseas websites such as Google, Facebook and even major payment systems to be accessed within its territory. China has its own analogues for every largest Western digital service. For example, instead of Google Maps China has Baidu Maps. For taxi services, they have Didi, while Grab and Uber are all blocked. The same applies to bank cards, such as MasterCard, American Express, Visa and certain others.

Only a few places (usually where expats are mostly based) in China accept these cards, while all China uses Alipay and WeChat for payment. However, the tricky thing is that it is very difficult and almost impossible to open an Alipay or WeChat account if you do not have a Chinese bank account. And it is difficult to open a Chinese bank account unless you live there. That said, without Alipay and WeChat accounts you cannot freely access Chinese consumers.

And with Alipay and WeChat accounts you can enter Chinese market and accept payments from Chinese consumers with payment methods that only work in China. Thus, through your Hong Kong company, you can offer your services and products to China and other regions.

Do I need to open a bank account in Hong Kong to register for Alipay and WeChat Pay?

Yes, to successfully open an AliPay and Wechat account and further make transactions through these applications, you need to have a bank account in Hong Kong. You can open a bank account in Hong Kong for your company and then register for an account in these two payment services.

How can I open a bank account for my company incorporated in Hong Kong?

The exact documents required for companies to be submitted for bank account opening differs from bank to bank, but usually these are the following documents:

• Corporate documents, including copies of Articles of Association, Enterprise Registration, Company Registration Certificate;
• Personal documents of individuals that will have access to a bank account and will have a right to sign banking documents.

What is a WeChat public account? How can I use it for my company?

WeChat public account is used as a promotion channel of your products and services within China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Macau. This digital platform is a way to access a huge market. More than 2 billion users use WeChat on a daily basis.

With WeChat public account your company incorporated in Hong Kong can use such business tools as online advertising, mobile order forms, content marketing, customer support, payment services, etc.

How to open a WeChat public account for my business in Hong Kong?

You need to follow these steps:

• Verify Hong Kong company email address;
• Verify company and business type with corporate documents;
• Specify business and merchant information;
• Connect WeChat account with WeChat public account.

If WeChat and Alipay are mostly used in China, why do I need to register a company in Hong Kong?

First and foremost, Hong Kong offers a highly competitive tax rate with 8.25% or 16.5% of profits depending on the source of income. Income tax applies only to income derived from Hong Kong.

Hong Kong is the major financial and business center. Hong Kong is a top-rated jurisdiction for doing business which has developed into one of the most affluent banking sectors in the world. You can choose from more than 200 banks, including largest international banks, to open a bank account.

Ecompany.ltd specializes in company formation in several countries across the globe, including Hong Kong. Our key benefit is that we provide online business solutions: company formation and company management, accounting and legal services, translation and certification of documents. Please feel free to contact us with any questions you may have.