ABSTRACT

Mr Raymond Ling Cheung Li

Executive Director, Banking Policy Department

Hong Kong Monetary Authority

Y2K Contingency Planning

It is internationally well recognised that the Hong Kong banking sector has been at the forefront in the world in preparing for the Year 2000 issue. Banks and major financial systems such as payment systems have completed the necessary modification and testing of their mission-critical systems well before the century date change. This should help minimise the probability of severe system failures prior to or after the transition to 2000.

Despite these best efforts, some inevitable disruptions may occur due to the unprecedented scope of the Year 2000 problem. The banking sector has therefore developed contingency plans to minimise the impacts of these disruptions to the banking services in the unlikely event that they occur. The Hong Kong Monetary Authority has also formulated a comprehensive contingency plan to deal with possible disruptions and help build confidence that the disruptions will not affect the stability of the monetary and banking systems.

After all, a smooth transition to year 2000 depends heavily on bank customers remaining rational in preparing for or reacting upon any system problems occurring before or after the millennium change. As a result, a proper communication programme that would promote public confidence in the ability of banks to deal with disruptions is an integral part of any contingency plan for the banking sector.

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