ZA Bank Limited

ZA Bank Limited
Company typePrivate
IndustryVirtual banking, Financial services
FoundedAugust 2018 (2018-08) in Hong Kong
FounderZhongAn
HeadquartersUNIT 1301, LEVEL 13, IT STREET, CYBERPORT 3, 100 CYBERPORT ROAD, HONG KONG[1]
Area served
Hong Kong
Key people
Calvin(吳忠豪)[2]
ProductsDeposits, loans, investment, insurance distribution
Owner
Number of employees
~200 (2023)
Websitebank.za.group/hk/

ZA Bank Limited (Chinese: 眾安銀行有限公司) is a licensed virtual bank headquartered in Hong Kong. It is one of the first eight virtual banks authorized by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) under the 2019 virtual banking licensing scheme.[3]

ZA Bank is a subsidiary of ZhongAn, whose major shareholders include ZhongAn, Bestar Holdings, Warrior Investment, and AIA Group. The bank launched its pilot trial in December 2019 and officially began public operations in March 2020. It provides retail banking services through a mobile-only platform, including savings and time deposit accounts, personal loans, and insurance distribution.[4][5]

As of 2023, ZA Bank is among the most active virtual banks in Hong Kong by user base and loan volume. Its head office is located at Cyberport 3, Pok Fu Lam, Hong Kong.[6]

History

In August 2018, ZhongAn Online P&C Insurance, Bestar Holdings, and initially China CITIC Bank International formed a joint venture named ZhongAn Virtual Finance Limited to apply for a virtual bank licence from the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA).[7] CITIC later withdrew before the licence was granted and its executive Raymond Or resigned from the board in February 2019.[8]

On 27 March 2019, the HKMA issued virtual banking licences to the first batch of applicants, including ZhongAn Virtual Finance Limited, which was later renamed ZA Bank. ZA Bank launched its pilot trial on 18 December 2019 under the HKMA Fintech Supervisory Sandbox.[9]

The bank became the first virtual bank in Hong Kong to begin full operations on 24 March 2020, offering mobile-only banking services including savings accounts, time deposits, local transfers(include FPS), facial recognition login, and multi-currency support.

In February 2020, ZA Bank partnered with Fiserv to implement the VisionPLUS payment platform for card issuance and transaction processing.[10]

Subsequently, ZA Bank introduced several new features:

  • In October 2020, it launched a custom-number Visa debit card (ZA Card), the first of its kind in Hong Kong; the physical card was issued in November.[11]
  • By March 2021, it expanded into SME banking with commercial accounts and unsecured business loans.[12]
  • In 2022, ZA Bank acquired a Type 1 licence from the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC), partnered with Generali for insurance distribution, launched investment fund services, and integrated Wise for cross-border remittances.[13]

By mid-2023, ZA Bank had become the largest virtual bank in Hong Kong by customer deposits, loan balances, and user base—holding over 700,000 customers, approximately HK$10.7 billion in deposits and HK$4.9 billion in loans.[14][15]

In March 2025, the bank appointed Chung Hon Ng (Ng Chung-hon) as CEO, effective 27 March 2025.

References

  1. ^ Authority, Hong Kong Monetary. "Hong Kong Monetary Authority". Hong Kong Monetary Authority. Retrieved 2025-07-30.
  2. ^ "ZA Bank 委任吳忠豪為新任行政總裁". ZA Bank (in Chinese (Hong Kong)). Retrieved 2025-07-30.
  3. ^ Gagua, Frances (2020-07-30). "Meet ZA Bank, Hong Kong's first virtual-only lender". asianbankingandfinance.net. Retrieved 2025-07-30.
  4. ^ "ZA Bank to launch virtual asset trading services for retail investors under new licensing regime". ZA Bank. Retrieved 2025-07-30.
  5. ^ "Hong Kong's first virtual bank selects Wolters Kluwer's OneSumX for regulatory reporting". www.wolterskluwer.com. Retrieved 2025-07-30.
  6. ^ "Contact Us". bank.za.group. Retrieved 2025-07-30.
  7. ^ "眾安信銀合拓虛擬銀行 柯清輝助陣 內地金融巨頭搶灘 平保傳伙拍八達通 - 20180813 - 報章內容 財經". 明報財經網 (in Chinese (Taiwan)). Archived from the original on 2021-07-25. Retrieved 2025-07-30.
  8. ^ "爭虛銀牌　信銀退出眾安合營 中標添變數　料最多4間投得". Apple Daily 蘋果日報. Archived from the original on 2019-03-26. Retrieved 2025-07-30.
  9. ^ Authority, Hong Kong Monetary. "Hong Kong Monetary Authority - Granting of virtual banking licences". Hong Kong Monetary Authority. Retrieved 2025-07-30.
  10. ^ "ZA Bank Readies for Transformation of Hong Kong Banking with Selection of Fiserv Payment Technology". Fiserv, Inc. 2020-02-06. Retrieved 2025-07-30.
  11. ^ "ZA Card with the number you really want". bank.za.group. Retrieved 2025-07-30.
  12. ^ Kong, Fintech News Hong (2022-12-05). "ZA Bank Pilots Sandbox for Express Online Account Opening for SMEs". Fintech Hong Kong. Retrieved 2025-07-30.
  13. ^ "ZA Bank becomes Hong Kong's first virtual bank to receive Type 1 SFC licence (dealing in securities)". bank.za.group. Retrieved 2025-07-30.
  14. ^ Chapman, Tom (2024-03-01). "ZA Bank & Global Payments: Enhancing Digital Lending". fintechmagazine.com. Retrieved 2025-07-30.
  15. ^ "ZA Bank's revenue, users rise". www.thestandard.com.hk. Retrieved 2025-07-30.
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