Year of the Snake: Returning employees can get Asia Miles, lai see, and packages from Hong Kong banks.
As Hong Kong’s workers return to their desks on Monday after a long holiday break, many large banks and financial firms are offering them millions of dollars in lai see, hampers, Asia Miles, lucky draws and other gifts to ring in the Year of the Snake.
Companies have traditionally given staffers lai see packets on the first working day of the Lunar New Year as a token of their appreciation and a blessing for the year ahead.
A Post poll of 10 lenders found that this year’s return-to-work lai see packets are as fat as they were last year, ranging from HK$100 (US$12.82) to HK$1,000. But many banks are going beyond the famous red packets.
For the second year in a row, digital lender ZA Bank was the biggest giver out of those surveyed, handing over HK$1,000 to each staff member via its ZA Bank app. It also added features that allow managers to send surprise-filled red packets to different teams, with a total pool of up to HK$2,000.
ZA Bank is also allowing its workers to take a “Snake King Holiday”, a day off that can be taken during the first month of the Lunar New Year. It also unveiled a new employee benefits programme.
“At ZA Bank, we owe our success to the dedication and hard work of our employees,” said Calvin Ng, the company’s alternate CEO. “The Lunar New Year is a time to express gratitude and foster togetherness.”
“These initiatives not only recognise our employees’ contributions but also ensure they are re-energised to embrace the challenges and opportunities of the year ahead.”
Citigroup ranked second by paying a return-to-work lai see of HK$800 to its 4,500 employees. The number eight is auspicious in Chinese and is associated with wealth.
In her Lunar New Year message to Citi colleagues, Hong Kong CEO Aveline San said: “The snake is a symbol of intelligence, adaptability and creativity” and she encouraged colleagues “to embrace these qualities to help clients win in the new year”.
HSBC Holdings ranked No 1 in terms of total lai see disbursement. The city’s biggest lender and subsidiary Hang Seng Bank plan to distribute HK$500 to each of their 26,000 staff members, amounting to more than HK$13 million.
Bank of China (Hong Kong) plans to give each of its employees HK$500 and a gift hamper when they return to work.
Standard Chartered plans to offer its employees HK$200 each. The lender also recently held a lucky draw offering more than 1,000 prizes, including a top award of 50,000 Asia Miles, which is enough for two people to fly to Osaka, Japan, and back. Other prizes include two tickets to Hong Kong Disneyland or Ocean Park, as well as gift certificates for five-star hotels.
While many lenders choose to use digital lai see, Bank of East Asia plans to keep it old school by giving out HK$100 physical red packets to its employees. DBS Hong Kong plans to give its employees HK$100 digitally.
ICBC (Asia), the Hong Kong unit of China’s largest lender, will offer lai see and special gifts to staff. It did not provide specifics on the employee payouts.
Digital lender WeLab Bank will offer lai see and a higher savings rate of 2.75 per cent for all Hong Kong staffers, covering deposits up to HK$5 million.
“Through this special rate, we’d like to express our gratitude to the team for the hard work and dedication, and help them grow their money in a highly flexible way,” said CEO Tat Lee.
