As part of its ongoing Bank Culture Reform, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) commenced a self-assessment exercise in 2019, requiring 30 banks (all major retail banks and selected foreign bank branches with substantial operations in Hong Kong) to conduct self-assessments on their culture enhancement efforts. In its review, the HKMA highlighted the importance of incentive systems in promoting a sound bank culture, and stated its aim to conduct focused reviews that dive deeper into the incentive systems of retail banks’ front offices.

In this publication, we outline the key insights obtained from the HKMA’s review of self-assessments on bank culture, and our reflections on the review of the self-assessments, with a focus on incentive systems.