Pawn Shop

These iconic stores have been legal in Hong Kong since 1926, but pawnbroking was actually one of the earliest businesses in the city. Today, there are around 250 pawn shops in Hong Kong according to the Hong Kong and Kowloon Pawnbrokers’ Association.

Their survival till this day is down to Hongkongers’ keen appetite for quick-access, short-term loans that allow them to bypass all the paperwork and bureaucracy needed for a bank loan.

Pawn shops are regulated by the government. They may not charge more than 3.5 per cent interest per lunar month, and loans are restricted to HK$100,000 or under.

The instantly recognisable sign for a pawnshop shows an upside-down bat holding a coin. This is auspicious in traditional Chinese culture because the word for bat sounds very similar to that for “fortune”, while the phrase “upside-down bat” sounds similar to “good fortune has arrived”.

In past decades, customers would pawn electrical appliances and duvets, but due to their decline in market value, nowadays it is more common to pawn gold jewellery and luxury watches. Back then, poor families were especially reluctant to part with their duvets – often considered the most valuable and essential item at home.