Beware of Bogus Financial Companies Demanding Repayments Check If You Are Truly in Debt
2025-08-29
What should you do if financial companies call you unexpectedly and ask for repayments? First, check carefully if you are truly in debt. There are scammers who pose as financial companies and use the above tactic. A number of former debtors wrongly believed the scammers and transferred money to their accounts, ultimately suffering losses.
Defrauding tricks
- Scammers call victims randomly or after illegally obtaining their information
- Posing as staff of financial companies, scammers claim that victims have not paid off their debts and ask them to transfer repayments to designated accounts
- Once victims have made transfers, scammers ask for more money by inventing excuses such as “handling fees” and even committing threatening acts until the victims realise that they have been scammed
Some scammers obtain victims’ personal information through illegal means so they are able to tell the victims’ names, identity card numbers, addresses, etc. and even breakdowns of previous debts, such as the lenders and monthly repayment amounts. If the victims request more details about the debts, the scammers will refuse to reveal the names of the financial companies, their addresses and the reasons for having debts, citing “confidentiality” as an excuse.
How lenders pursue debts
A lender may engage a debt-collection agency (DCA) to recover the debt. Under the Code of Banking Practice, a lender must give you advance written notice that a DCA will be hired to collect what you owe. The notice must include detailed information regarding the overdue amount repayable, the length of time you’ve been in default, the costs the lender will add to the debt for recovery and the contact information of the lender's debt recovery department. You must also be told what to do if a DCA attempts illegal recovery tactics.
How to deal with debt collectors
Know your rights. DCAs operate under the Code of Banking Practice guidelines issued by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority. When employing DCAs, Securities and Futures Commission (SFC)-licensed corporations and money lenders have to comply with the debt collection guidelines issued by the SFC and the Code of Practice issued by the Licensed Money Lenders Association Limited, respectively.
Debt-collection companies must not attempt to recover debts from anyone other than the debtor or guarantor; nor can they apply tactics intended to humiliate or harass the debtor, family members or any other person to recover debts. DCAs are also forbidden from resorting to violence or any form of physical intimidation.
If you're contacted by a DCA, ask them to confirm the amount of the debt and whom you owe it to. If the details don't sound right, tell the collector that you need to verify the information and then contact your lender.
If you find the tactics used by the DCA not in line with requirements as specified in the Code of Banking Practice, you can make a complaint to the authorised institution. If you are not satisfied with the manner in which the authorised institution handles your complaint, you may seek help from the Complaints Processing Centre from the Hong Kong Monetary Authority. If you have a complaint about a Licensed Money Lender, you may contact the Licensed Money Lenders Association.
(Excerpt from the website of the Investor and Financial Education Council)
Our Advice
Even if strangers who send you messages are able to tell your personal information, it does not necessarily mean that they are genuine staff of financial companies. Scammers can obtain the personal information of the public by unlawful means;
If someone claims to be a staff member of a lending institution and instructs you to hand over personal information and assets for various reasons, you should check and verify the identity of the caller with the relevant institution;
If in doubt, please call the “Anti-Scam Helpline 18222” for assistance.
