Standard Chartered suspends certain Hong Kong operations

Reuters
People queue up outside a Standard Chartered Bank branch before operation hours at the central business district in Singapore January 23, 2014. REUTERS/Edgar Su

HONG KONG (Reuters) - Standard Chartered Plc has suspended some of its Hong Kong banking operations, including over-the-counter services and check deposits, until further notice due to "situations in certain areas", the Asia-focused lender said on Monday. Standard Chartered has activated contingency plans to ensure continuous services to customers, the bank said in a statement. It said services including ATMs and cash deposits machines will be temporarily suspended in branches in Causeway Bay on Hong Kong island and Nathan Road in Kowloon. Some Hong Kong financial firms advised staff to work from home on Monday or go to secondary offices after thousands of pro-democracy demonstrators blocked parts of the city and clashed with police. Hong Kong police fired volleys of tear gas on Sunday to try to disperse protesters who have launched what they term a "new era" of civil disobedience to pressure Beijing into granting full democracy for the former British colony. (Reporting by Denny Thomas and Umesh Desai; Editing by Paul Tait)