Hong Kong Company With Merchant Account

• Hong Kong features a wide range of business structures that suit a variety of purposes. For most clients, a limited liability company would be most suitable. Regardless, prior to every engagement with our clients, Tetra Consultants will seek to understand our clients’ business plan and needs and recommend the most optimal company structure for your business.

• Tetra Consultants will then conduct a name search to check the availability of your preferred business name and reserve it. Tetra Consultants will then complete the name approval application forms and submit them to the Hong Kong Companies Registry.
• Tetra Consultants will also provide our international clients with a local registered address and company secretary.

• Upon successful approval from the Registry, Tetra Consultants’ legal team will also draft the articles of incorporation, business plan and other required incorporation documents for your review. Once confirmed, we will submit them to the Hong Kong Companies Registry.
• It is mandatory to submit the appointment notification of directors and secretary, consent to act as director, registered address notification and other applicable documents as required by the Hong Kong Company Registry.
• Once the company is registered, Tetra Consultants will courier the documents of your new corporate home, including the Certificate of Incorporation, Memorandum & Articles of Association, Register of Directors and Register of Shareholders, to your preferred address.

• Once the above is completed, Tetra Consultants banking team will proceed to open a corporate bank account with a reputable Hong Kong bank such as Citibank or HSBC. These banks are world-class institutions with excellent internet banking facilities.
• However, Hong Kong banks will require our clients to travel to the country to sign the account opening forms. Our banking team will accompany our clients to the bank meetings to ensure a seamless and swift account opening experience.

• After opening the corporate bank account, your business can now begin to carry out activities and conduct transactions. Tetra Consultants will then assist your company in submitting a merchant account application to a trusted merchant account provider.
• The list of merchant account providers available for Hong Kong businesses are as follows:
  • Banctek
  • BankCard USA
  • Check21
• Besides these merchant account providers available for businesses specific to Hong Kong, there are also many international merchant account providers that serve businesses based in any jurisdiction. They are as follows:
  • ExpiTrans, Inc
  • Glacier Payments
  • Global Merchant Advisors (GMA)
  • Humboldt Merchant Services
  • InChek, LLC

• After setting up the corporate and merchant bank accounts, Tetra Consultants will assist your business to register for tax with the Hong Kong Inland Revenue Department. The deadline to complete this is within 1 month from the incorporation date. Upon registration, the Inland Revenue Department will issue a business registration certificate with your new company trade register number.

What are the advantages of a Hong Kong company with merchant account?

Ease of transaction

• As a Hong Kong company with merchant account allows access to payment services via credit or debit cards, they will allow your business to simplify and speed up the transaction procedure and payment processing, through a one-stop payment gateway. The cards that will be accepted include Visa cards, MasterCard, Diners Club, American Express and more.

Higher customer satisfaction

• More than 80% of companies that allow transactions to be made with credit cards were reported to have better business than those that did not take in credit card payments, according to a GoPayment Survey conducted by Intuit Inc.
• As such, accepting credit card payments through a merchant account will afford a great advantage for your business in creating high customer satisfaction.

Access to a wide range of digital payment services

• Merchant accounts allow a wider range of digital payment services to be accessed than corporate bank accounts do. These service options include reporting of payments successfully made, making fund payments, enabling sales transactions and other commerce services in Hong Kong.

What are the disadvantages of a Hong Kong company with merchant account?

Greater risk and vulnerability to fraud

• As transactions for a merchant account are typically made online, this exposes your business to more risks associated with the vulnerability of online transactions. Some of these risks include fraud, online scams and hacking of the merchant account.
• However, these risks can be mitigated. Tetra Consultants will assist your business in securing reliable security software to protect the security of your merchant account and transactions, as well as to safeguard against fraud and scams.

Longer set-up process

• Merchant accounts typically necessitate a lengthier set up-process as they require more strict and in-depth KYC checks than a corporate bank account opening necessitates. This is in order to safeguard against financial crimes and money laundering, as well as to ensure the company stays compliant with financial regulations. As such, the steps to open a merchant account is typically not as simple as for a corporate account.

Travel required for bank meeting

• To open a corporate bank account in Hong Kong, our international clients are most likely required to travel to Hong Kong for a face-to-face meeting with bankers. However, Tetra Consultants will negotiate with the banks to request a waiver and seek non-travel solutions whenever possible. In the event that travel is needed, we will send a trusted representative to accompany you to the meeting with the bank.

Looking to register a Hong Kong company with merchant account?

• Contact us to find out more about how to register a Hong Kong company with merchant account. Our team of experts will revert within the next 24 hours.

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