A report examined how banks in the jurisdiction are slowly but surely returning to more conventional work operations, taking measures to prevent a resurgence of the virus.

Hong Kong has been in the headlines for negative reasons in recent days but at least the Asian jurisdiction can boast that it sets a positive example in how to emerge from COVID-19 lockdowns, as seen by how banks are adjusting, according to a media report yesterday.

The South China Morning Post noted that staff at Goldman Sachs, for example, sit at every other desk in offices at the firm’s offices in Central, split into “Blue” and “White” teams rotating between the office and home. Citigroup has put in plastic dividers between trading desks and other high-intensity areas. HSBC adapted by transforming a three-day China Conference into an online event spanning three weeks. Elevators in the International Conference Centre, home to firms such as Morgan Stanley, have been reprogrammed to limit how many people can use them at any one time.

The jurisdiction’s move out of lockdown and relatively low mortality rate from the pandemic has been one of the brighter spots at a time when Beijing’s move to enforce a new national security law has raised global alarms. (See here.)

Rival global financial capitals such as London and New York have been pushed into lockdown, drastically affecting business turnover and raising concerns about whether firms will be permanently scarred. Asia was the first region to be hit by the pandemic, so it is the first to emerge from the other side. Rival Asian hub Singapore imposed “circuit breaker” lockdowns a few weeks ago. It is also seen as one of the more successful jurisdictions at handling the pandemic, along with the likes of Taiwan and South Korea. 

A tricky challenge for firms is how quickly to bring back staff without creating a potential second spike in the virus. The SCMP report said that banks are moving slowly. Citigroup increased the number of its staff in the office to 50 per cent on 20 May and Goldman was expected to take a similar course from yesterday; the report said HSBC has about 30 per cent of its Hong Kong staff in the office.