It has been neither confirmed nor denyed by the HK monetary authorities, but it has been reported by the South China Morning Post that ATM’s in Hong Kong have been hit with an extreme surge in withdrawals by customers with CUP cards.
An unnamed source reported to the SCMP that “The rise in ATM withdrawals in terms of volume and number has been staggering. The taps are gushing,"
This could be something to do with the new KYC standards that have been introduced nearby Macau. Those looking to withdraw cash from an ATM in Macau must first scan their government issued ID before being able to use their China Union Pay bankcard.
Hong Kong has no plans to install facial recognition software on their ATMs, so the path of least resistance for consumers seems to be to withdraw in HK instead of Macau.