EleBank (formerly Airstar Bank): Hong Kong virtual bank controlled by Futu

The HKMA list of authorized institutions as at 31 December 2025 listed Airstar Bank Limited among the licensed banks incorporated in Hong Kong. Since then, the HKMA page on bank contact details, revised on 17 August 2026, mentions Ele Bank Limited under digital banks (the new name for virtual banks), with the website elebank.com. The app listing states that it is intended for customers of EleBank Limited.

The specialist Hong Kong press reports that the name change, which took place in 2026, followed the broker Futu's takeover of the bank after a capital increase, with a positioning centred on investment. We classify the bank among licensed banks (licensed-bank); Airstar Bank is kept as an alias.

The current shareholding has not been verified against a primary source, and the entry in the HKMA online register could not be opened from our research environment.

The app description, published by the bank under its former brand, states that it serves "Hong Kong residents and visitors to Hong Kong", with visitors having to be physically present in Hong Kong when they apply to open an account. Account opening is done remotely from a compatible phone.

In practical terms, a Hong Kong resident can open an account from the app; a non-resident can only do so during a stay on site. It is not an offshore bank that can be opened remotely from abroad.

The documents required (Hong Kong identity card, passport, proof of address), the minimum age, the nationalities accepted for visitors and what happens to the account after a departure are not specified on the pages reviewed. The description consulted predates the rebranding and must be confirmed on the EleBank website.

Since its name change, the bank has announced an expansion into savings, wealth management, credit, payments and insurance; its positioning emphasises investment.

Currencies, card, fees and limits are not documented on any official page reviewed.

The Hong Kong Deposit Protection Scheme limit has been up to HK$800,000¹ per depositor per bank since October 2024. It applies only to deposits held with a member bank; investments offered by the bank are not covered.

The entity's membership of the DPS has not been verified.

The limit is assessed bank by bank: deposits spread across several Hong Kong virtual banks each benefit from their own limit, whereas several accounts opened with the same bank are added together. According to the HKMA, the increase in the limit is part of a first phase of reforms to the Deposit Protection Scheme that took effect on 1 October 2024.

• The current account-opening conditions under the EleBank brand, in particular for visitors.
• The physical presence in Hong Kong required of a non-resident when applying.
• The distinction between protected deposits and investment products, at the heart of the new positioning.
• The reporting obligations linked to your tax residence: a French tax resident must declare every year the accounts opened, held, used or closed outside France, including those with online banks and payment wallets; other countries impose comparable obligations.
• The tax residence self-certification requested at account opening: under the automatic exchange of information commitments of the bank's country, the account's balances and income may be reported to the tax authority of your country of residence.
• The role of the account in your overall set-up: a local digital account is mainly useful for day-to-day life on site; it does not replace an account in your home country for direct debits, a pension or a mortgage, nor a multi-currency account for receiving euros.