Fixed Income Instrument

Bond is investment product. Some bonds are structured products involving derivatives. This investment decision is yours but you should not invest in this product unless Dah Sing Bank, Limited has explained to you that this product is suitable for you having regard to your financial situation, investment experience and investment objectives.

Key Risks Warning

The key risks associated with an investment in a bond are set out below. However, given the diverse range of bonds offered in the market, the risk factors set out below are generic in nature and do not purport to disclose or discuss all of the risks associated with an investment in the particular bond for which you are purchasing. You should read the other risk factors, warning statements and selling restrictions set out in the offering (and product) document(s) for the relevant bond in order to understand the specific risks relating to the bond for which you are subscribing. If you are in doubt about the nature of or the risks associated with this investment product, you should obtain necessary and appropriate professional advice before investing in this product. You should only consider entering into bond transactions if you are familiar with these features and products of this kind and understand the relevant offering document(s) and its terms. In case the offering document(s) is only available in English and English is not your preferred language, you should not enter into this transaction.

Important Notice:

This is an investment product. The investment decision is yours but you should not invest in this product unless the intermediary who sells it to you has explained to you that the product is suitable for you having regard to your financial situation, investment experience and investment objectives.

An investment in bond involves a number of significant risks and other important factors. Before investing in a bond, you should consider whether the bond is suitable for your individual investment objectives, financial circumstances and needs. You should also consider your financial targets, investment timeframe, and the degree of risk you will accept in order to achieve your goals.

Prior to investing in a bond, you should consult with your own legal, regulatory, tax, financial and accounting advisors to the extent you consider it necessary, and make your own investment, hedging and trading decisions (including decisions regarding the suitability of this investment) based upon your own judgment and advice from those advisers you consider necessary.

You understand and acknowledge that the Bank, its affiliates and / or subsidiaries is/are dealing with you at arm's length as your counterparty. In such case, you should be aware that any dealing, trading, engagement or transaction with the Bank, its affiliates and / or subsidiaries could result in a loss to you and a gain to the Bank, its affiliates and / or subsidiaries. Also, the Bank, its affiliates and / or subsidiaries may make a profit from a transaction with you whatever the result of the transaction, whether from your point of view or otherwise.

You should only consider entering into bond transactions if you are familiar with these features and products of this kind and understand the terms and conditions governing the bond transactions.

[Applicable to Bonds other than iBond(s) issued by the Government of the HKSAR / fixed rate bond(s) issued by the Ministry of Finance of the People's Republic of China] The bond you are investing is not authorized by the Securities and Futures Commission. It has not been offered and sold, and will not be offered or sold in Hong Kong, other than to "Professional Investors" as defined in the Securities and Futures Ordinance (Cap. 571 of the laws of Hong Kong) and any rules made thereunder.

If the bond is listed under Chapter 37 of the Rules Governing the Listing of Securities on the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited ("Chapter 37 Bond"), you should be aware that the Hong Kong Stock Exchange has not reviewed the contents of the issuer's offering documents. The Hong Kong Stock Exchange has only vetted the issuer's for compliance with listing eligibility and checked the issuer's offering documents to ensure that the obligations to include the prescribed form of disclaimer and responsibility statements, and a statement limiting distribution of issuer's offering documents to Professional Investors (as defined in the Securities and Futures Ordinance (Cap. 571 of the laws of Hong Kong) only have been complied with. Listing status of Chapter 37 Bond should not be taken as an endorsement of its commercial merits or credit quality or quality of disclosure in the issuer's offering documents. The Hong Kong Stock Exchange takes no responsibility for the contents of the listing document, and the directors of the issuer collectively and individually accept full responsibility for the accuracy of the information contained in the listing document. You should also read the prescribed disclaimer statement in the listing document. You should not purchase the Chapter 37 Bond unless you are a Professional Investor and understand the risks involved.

[Applicable to Bonds which are classified as complex product] You should be aware that the bond you are investing is a complex product, it involves high risks and you should exercise caution in relation to the bond. If the bond has been authorised by the Securities and Futures Commission (the "SFC") in Hong Kong under the Securities and Futures Ordinance of Hong Kong, you should note that SFC authorisation does not imply official recommendation nor is it a recommendation or endorsement of the bond nor does it guarantee the commercial merits of the bond or its performance. It does not mean the bond is suitable for all investors nor is it an endorsement of its suitability for any particular investor or class of investors. If the bond for which the offering documents or information provided by the issuer have not been reviewed by the SFC, you should note that the relevant offering documents or information have not been reviewed by the SFC and you are advised to exercise caution in relation to the offer. For bond which is only available to Professional Investors, please note that the bond is only available to Professional Investors. If the bond is only available to Professional Investors (such as bonds with exchangeable / convertible / loss absorption features), it is generally not suitable for retail investors.

Credit Risk - Bonds are subject to the creditworthiness of the issuer / guarantor (if applicable) and there is no assurance of protection against a default by the issuer / guarantor (if applicable) in respect of its payment obligation. You assume the risk that the issuer will not be able to satisfy its obligations under the bonds and you assume such risk as from the trade date, even if settlement has not yet been effected.

In the event that bankruptcy proceedings or scheme of arrangement or similar proceedings to avert bankruptcy are instituted by or against the issuer / guarantor (if applicable), the payment of sums due on the bonds may be substantially reduced or delayed and in the worst scenario, the value of the bonds may fall to zero and you could sustain a total loss of your investment.

In the event the bond or any of its underlying referenced link / asset / security is issued by a sovereign or governmental entity or quasi-governmental entity, repayment of the principal under the bond and applicable coupons thereof may be subject to sovereign risks. This includes the potential default by such sovereign, government / quasi-government issuer or the occurrence of political or economic events resulting in governmental action such as declaration of a moratorium on debt repayment or negating repayment obligations of the sovereign issuer. If any such event were to occur, you may lose up to all of your initial investment in the bond.

You should also note that besides issuer / guarantor, there may be other credit enhancement arrangements included in bonds, such as standby letter of credit or other arrangements provided by guarantors, obligors or other parties. For simplicity, such providers of credit enhancement arrangements are collectively referred as issuer / guarantor in this risk disclosure.

Risks Associated with Bonds which Have Multiple Credit Support Providers with No Material Operations and / or Have Complex Structures – You should be aware that the bond has multiple credit support providers with no material operations and / or other complex structures the aim of which may be to subordinate your rights to those of the guarantors.

Credit Ratings May Not Reflect All Risks – The credit ratings to an issue of bond, the issuer and the guarantor may not reflect the potential impact of all risks and factors that may affect the value of the bond. The credit rating is not a recommendation to buy, sell or hold bonds and may be subject to revision, suspension or withdrawal at any time by the credit rating agencies. A suspension, reduction or withdrawal of the credit rating may adversely affect the market price of the bond. Non-investment grade bond and unrated bond may be subject to higher credit risk and more vulnerable to economic changes than investment grade bond.

Event Risk – A corporate event such as a merger or takeover may adversely affect the issuer's / guarantor's (if applicable) ability to fulfill its obligations under the bond.

Risks Associated with Bonds with No Collateral and No Guarantee – The bond may neither be secured by any collateral nor guaranteed by any guarantor. In such a case, you will be relying on the creditworthiness of the issuer only.

Liquidity Risk – You should be prepared to hold your bonds until maturity as you may not be able to sell some or all of your bonds when you require or at an amount equal to or more than your principal investment. There can be no active or liquid secondary trading market for the bonds you purchased and the bonds may not be traded on any regulated markets or listed on any exchange. In addition, the sale or transfer of the bonds and / or the mode of such sale or transfer may be subject to restrictions by the issuer, which may further limit the liquidity of the bonds. Using this investment for trading opportunities is not encouraged.

Capped Return, Non-Principal Protected and Not Protected Deposit – This is not a principal guaranteed investment. You could suffer very substantial loss which could be magnified. Your potential return on an investment in the bonds will be affected by fees (if any) charged by the Bank or other related third parties and the potential maximum amount receivable at maturity of the bonds is capped at 100% of the bonds' principal or any specified amount plus coupons payable (if applicable). Bonds are not protected deposits for the purpose of the Deposit Protection Scheme. Bonds are investment products and are not the same as and should not be treated as substitutes for conventional term deposit.

Interest Rate Risk – The value of the bonds can be adversely affected by rising market interest rates and generally speaking, the longer the term of the bonds, the greater the interest rate risk or benefit from the movement of the market interest rate when other things being equal. Some bonds have variable and / or deferral of interest payment terms and you may face uncertainty over the amount and time of the coupon payment to be received.

Inflation Risk – Inflation is a serious concern for those who need to rely on the regular income from bonds as the return on bonds will lose purchasing power if inflation takes place.

Exchange Rate Risk – To the extent that the bonds are denominated / settled in non-local currency, you should be aware of the risk of exchange rate fluctuations. Any fall in the non-local currency will reduce the amount you receive when you convert a payment of coupons or principal back into your local currency. Exchange controls imposed by the relevant authorities may also adversely affect the applicable exchange rate and result in the receipt of reduced coupons or denomination and / or otherwise make it impossible or impracticable for the issuer to meet its repayment obligations in the original currency of the bonds.

CNY is currently subject to exchange controls imposed by the PRC government. The exchange rate of CNY may be adversely affected by the limited availability of CNY outside the PRC and any change in government policies. Particularly, secondary market for CNY related products may not be well developed and you may not be able to find a buyer, or the sale price could be much lower than the amount invested and hence suffer significant loss.

Market Risk – The value of bonds may fall as rapidly as it may rise throughout the tenor due to numerous factors, including, but not limited to, systemic risks, variations in the frequency and magnitude of changes in interest rates, inflation outlook, prevailing exchange rates, marketing for similar securities, and the financial strength and credit quality of the issuer / guarantor (if applicable).

The purchase of a bond issued by an issuer from, or denominated in a currency of, an emerging market country may expose you to additional risks. While such investments may yield high gains, there may be increased exposures to, among others, sovereign risk, credit risk, liquidity risk, exchange rate risk and market volatility.

Early Redemption Risk and Re-Investment Risk – The issuer may be entitled to early redeem the bond you purchased prior to maturity or otherwise adjust the terms of the bond for reasons such as event of default, change in tax law or in response to a market disruption or extraordinary event, and such redemption and / or adjustment may result in the return of an amount less than 100% of the bond's principal. You should refer to the offering document(s) for further details.

An optional redemption feature of the bond is likely to limit its market value. During any period when the relevant issuer may elect to redeem bonds, the market value of those bonds generally will not rise substantially above the price at which they can be redeemed. This also may be true prior to any redemption period.

You are exposed to the movement of interest rates whenever your bonds are redeemed, tendered or sold prior to maturity. There can be no assurance that you will be able to reinvest the amounts received upon redemption at a rate that will provide the same rate of return as your investment on the bonds.

Early Termination Risk – You must hold the bond you purchased until maturity to benefit from the repayment of 100% of the bond's principal and / or any coupons payable (if applicable) as provided for in the offering document(s). If you elect to sell the bond prior to maturity, depending on the market value of the bond at that time, the amount received by you for the bond may be less than 100% of the bond's principal.

Risk associated with Subordinated Bond – The rights and claims of the holders of subordinated bonds are subordinated and will rank lower in priority of payment to the claims of senior creditors. Although subordinated bonds may pay a higher rate of coupon than comparable bonds which are not subordinated, there is a risk that you will lose all or some of your investments should the relevant issuer / guarantor (if applicable) become insolvent.

Risks associated with Perpetual Bond – Perpetual bond has an indefinite term and the interest pay-out depends on the viability of the issuer in the very long term. The perpetual bond can only be disposed of by sale. However, if you wish to sell your bond, you may be unable to do so at a price at or above the amount you have paid for them, or at all, if insufficient liquidity exits in the market for the bond. Therefore, you should be aware that you may be required to bear the financial risks of an investment in the bond for an indefinite period of time.

Risks associated with bond with Extendable Features – The maturity date of bond may be extended by the issuer and hence you may face the uncertainty as to when you can get back the principal. It would be difficult for you to match the tenor of the bond against your liquidity needs.

Risks associated with bond with Exchangeable / Convertible / Loss Absorption Features – When purchasing a bond with exchangeable / convertible / loss absorption features, you may be subject to both equity and bond investment risks. If the bond is converted into equity, you will be exposed to the risk of the fluctuation in equity price and will have lowest priority of claims on the liquidation of the company. In addition, the bond with such features (including contingent convertible and / or write-down) is subject to the risk of being written down or converted to ordinary shares (as the case may be) (such as recapitalising the issuer of the bond as it goes through resolution), and may potentially resulting in a substantial loss to you. The bond with such features is a high risk product and, as the circumstances in which the bond may be required to bear loss are difficult to predict and ex ante assessments of the quantum of loss will also be highly uncertain, it is also treated as a complex product and you should therefore exercise caution. The bond with such features is targeted at Professional Investors only and is generally not suitable for retail investors. Expenses, taxes, stamp, issue, registration, documentary, transfer and other duties may be due by you upon the conversion of the bond. As the bond with such features is treated as a complex product, it will also be exposed to the risks described under "Applicable to Bonds which are classified as complex product" above.

Risks associated with bond with Substitution / Variation Features – Bond with substitution or variation features may allow the issuer or the regulators or other relevant bodies to substitute the bond / issuer / guarantor or change the terms of the bond. In this connection, you may face additional risk(s) after the substitution / variation such as lower return (if coupon rate being downwardly adjusted), longer tenor than expected (if the tenor being extended), additional credit risk (if the issuer being substituted with a lower credit rating entity) etc.

Taxation - Payments of principal and / or coupon in respect of the bonds, receipts or coupons may be made with withholding or deduction for, or on account of, any present or future tax, duty or charge of whatsoever nature or therein or levied by or on behalf of the relevant jurisdiction or any authority thereof or therein having power to tax or required by law. If any amount of or in respect of tax were to be withheld from that payment, neither the issuer nor the Bank nor any other persons would be obliged to pay additional amounts with respect to any bond as a result of the imposition of the withholding tax. You should consult your own tax, financial and accounting advisors to the extent you consider necessary before entering into bond transactions.

Conflicts of Interests – The interests of members of the Bank and its group may conflict with your interests in the bonds. You hereby understand and acknowledge that the Bank, its affiliates and / or subsidiaries is / are dealing with you at arm's length as your counterparty. To the extent permitted by law, the Bank, its affiliates and / or subsidiaries is / are not your fiduciary, nor does any of them accept any fiduciary obligations to you. You should be aware that any dealing, trading, engagement or transaction with the Bank, its affiliates and / or subsidiaries could result in a loss to you and a gain to the Bank, its affiliates and / or subsidiaries. Also, the Bank, its affiliates and / or subsidiaries may make a profit from a transaction with you whatever the result of the transaction, whether from your point of view or otherwise. Further, you may be subject to possible conflicts of interest risk due to the multiple capacities of the issuer and / or other relevant parties. You are advised to refer to the offering document(s) for further details.

Legislation and Regulatory Risk – Changes to laws or their interpretation in Hong Kong or elsewhere could adversely affect your investment or result in increased costs or expenses payable by you to the Bank. You must be satisfied that transaction in bonds is permitted under relevant laws, is appropriate for you and that you will continue to comply with relevant laws after making the investment. The Bank recommends you seek independent legal advice from a suitably qualified adviser in matters of taxation and corporate regulatory law.

Notes

1. For details, please contact our staff at the Investment Services Section.
2. Unless the context requires otherwise, this context does not constitute any offer, invitation or recommendation to any person to enter into any bond transaction, nor does it constitute any prediction of likely future movements in prices of any bond.
3. This content has not been reviewed by the Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong or any regulatory authority in Hong Kong.
4. In engaging in a transaction involving bonds, with or through Dah Sing Bank, the customer understands and agrees that:
   • The customer makes his own judgment in relation to investment or trading transactions;
   • Subject to applicable laws and regulations, Dah Sing Bank assumes no duty to make or give advice or recommendations
   • Dah Sing Bank, its subsidiaries and affiliates may hold positions which may not be consistent with any advice by Dah Sing Bank and which may result in losses on the customer's part; and
   • Any risks associated with any losses suffered as a result of Dah Sing Bank entering into any transactions or investments on the customer's behalf are for the customer's account.
5. Dah Sing Bank is not an independent intermediary and that Dah sing Bank receives fees, commissions, or other monetary benefits in entering into bond transaction with customers. For details, customers should refer to Dah Sing Bank's disclosure on monetary benefits which Dah Sing Bank provided to customers prior to or at the point of entering into transaction in bond.
6. The Chinese version of this content is for reference only and if there is any discrepancy between the English and Chinese version, the English version shall prevail.
7. This service / product is not targeted at customers in the European Union.

This brief warning cannot, of course, disclose all risks and other aspects in relation to bond. The customer should accordingly obtain independent expert financial advice before investing in any bond.