A wholly-owned subsidiary of Goldman Sachs Group has received a banking license from the Hong Kong Monetary Authority. The firm is expected to set up a local subsidiary for this purpose. This restricted banking license allows the US investment bank it to take deposits of HK$500,000 and above, but these will normally be used for investment banking and capital markets activities. Goldman Sachs has been setting up new subsidiaries as rules drawn up in the wake of the global financial crisis have forced financial firms to rethink where they book their over-the-counter derivatives transactions. The subsidiaries allow banks’ customers to transact with local entities, rather than deal cross-border with the parent bank in another jurisdiction.
