Money service operator convicted of operating without licence, 2 fined HK$2,000 each

2022-05-04

4th May 2022 – (Hong Kong) A male shop owner and a female shopkeeper of a money exchange shop were convicted of operating a money service without a valid licence at Kowloon City Magistrates’ Courts today. Each of them was fined HK$2,000.

Acting on information, Customs officers conducted an investigation in April last year and discovered a male shop owner and a female shopkeeper had been operating remittance business at a money exchange shop in To Kwa Wan after the money service operator licence had expired. Therefore, they were suspected of operating a money service without a licence. 

Under the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing Ordinance, a person who wishes to operate a remittance and/or money changing service is required to apply for a licence from the Customs and Excise Department. Any person who operates a money service without a valid licence commits an offence. The maximum penalty upon conviction is a fine of HK$100,000 and imprisonment for six months. 

Source: Dimsum Daily