One thing that is completely essential if one is to purchase property in China is some money to pay for it. As I plan to explain elsewhere, the best approach to this is to grant Power of Attorney to a local representative who can sign documents and transfer funds to the vendor.
This is all very well if the Power of Attorney is in place, but initially there are big problems transferring money to an unrelated person in China. There are two problems. One is that UK banks are reluctant to transfer to China as has some kind of elevated risk status. The other problem is that when they do the money takes ages - up to two weeks - to arrive. We are not talking about banks that keep their ledgers using quill pens, or even sable-hair brushes - these are banks that can set up a new account on their computer systems within ten minutes of the customer walking in through the door.
I spoke to a helpful, English-speaking, employee of HSBC Hong Kong. I was advised that as long as I bring along my passport and proof of identity I can open a bank account at any branch of HSBC in Hong Kong, and that I can have this account in HKD or RMB.
Take a look at this page on RMB credit cards and this page on general RMB banking.
I had toyed with the idea of using Citi as an alternative, but it seems clear that HSBC are the leaders in this field.
