In our opinion, there are several reasons why Li Ka-shing is unwilling to open a bank: First, Li Ka-shing has worked hard in the business world for decades, and he is good at dancing and has strong public relations skills, which is obvious to all. However, being an excellent businessman is completely different from being a banker, and the professional requirements for businessmen are not very high. However, to be an executive in the financial industry, you must have a master's degree and a doctorate in related fields. Li Ka-shing and his two sons are not studying finance, so naturally they will not set foot in banking.
What's more, the competition in Hong Kong's banking industry is fierce, and the banks operated by Li Ka-shing have no chance of winning in the face of the most competitive banks at home and abroad. In that case, Li Ka-shing wouldn't have to take the risk. Some people may suggest that Li Ka-shing can hire banking professionals to take care of it, but it is meaningless to open a bank like this. Professionals make decisions internally, and the CBRC supervises them externally. At best, Li Ka-shing can only be the major shareholder of the bank. It is better to invest your money directly in the existing bank, and there is no need to open your own bank.
Moreover, opening a bank is risky and does not make money. In Li Ka-shing's eyes, opening a bank is like a chicken rib. Every time there is a global financial crisis, banks, large and small, always close down, and the banking industry in Hong Kong is not only fiercely competitive, but also the average profit is declining every year. Opening a bank in Hong Kong or the Mainland is no longer a golden rice bowl, but now it has become an iron rice bowl and will become a mud rice bowl in the future. Ma Yun and Ma Hua Teng did not open a bank to make a fortune, but mainly to have a stable cash flow and master big data.
Third, Li Ka-shing's sensitivity to macroeconomics far exceeds that of a real economist. He has been in business for decades and is good at grasping different stages of development, and finally made a lot of money. Before the great development of domestic economy, Li Ka-shing invested in real estate, commerce, telecommunications and other fields. Now that the global economy is slowing down and the domestic economy is turning to a medium-speed development stage, Li Ka-shing has laid out the world communication, infrastructure and energy markets to earn stable income. With the advent of the 5G era, the Li Ka-shing family will begin to enter the 5G field again. Other industries make more money than opening a bank, and he certainly won't think of investing in opening a bank.
Finally, many people misunderstand that rich people want to invest in opening banks, but in fact, rich people want to borrow money to make money, not to borrow money from themselves. Companies in Li Ka-shing are good at using Qian Shengqian in the capital market, and the industries owned by the Lee family can provide a steady stream of cash flow every year. Li Ka-shing is neither short of funds nor needs to invest money in others. Even if Li Ka-shing needs funds, he can get a lot of money by calling HSBC.
It is one thing for Li Ka-shing to have money, but whether to invest in opening a bank is another matter, because opening a bank is highly professional, supervised by all parties, risky and not as high as expected. For the Li Ka-shing family, there are many low-risk places to make money without opening a bank. What's more, opening a bank is to lend money to others, and a real businessman is to borrow money to invest in renewable money. So Li Ka-shing can invest in the banking industry and become a major shareholder, but no matter how rich he is, he can't open his own bank.