HSBC "had no choice" but to freeze his accounts: Ted Hui

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HSBC group chief executive Noel Quinn told exiled former lawmaker Ted Hui Chi-fung the bank had no choice but to freeze his and his family's bank accounts.

Hui, who is in exile in Britain since December, uploaded a picture on Facebook of the email from Quinn sent him last Monday.

The bank had the legal responsibility to freeze his account in accordance to police instructions, Quinn told him in an email.

Hui also quoted the executive saying his account is frozen, not canceled.

Quinn also told him that a staff member of the bank has wrongly claimed that his credit card account was cancelled due to “commercial decision”, and it was only frozen too similar to his other accounts, Hui said.

Hui said the bank did not give him any formal explanation since his accounts being frozen a month ago. He criticized the bank as “irresponsible” and he does not accept Quinn's explanations.

“I can hardly accept the nearly laughable U-turn explanation given by the HSBC regarding my credit cards, from “a commercial decision to cancel” to “frozen only” after enormous public criticisms,” Hui said.

The 38-year-old former lawmaker, who faces nine charges over protest-related offenses in Hong Kong, jumped bail and announced in December that he would be in exile in Britain after going there from Denmark.

He later said on Facebook that his and his family's accounts in HSBC have been frozen.
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