The Hong Kong Stock Exchange has covered up negative Chinese characters associated with money after they were unveiled on a wall at its newly opened Connect Hall.
The exchange closed its iconic trading floor after 30 years of operation last year and opened the new hall last week. But media outlets soon noticed characters related to the Chinese radical bei/bui (貝) on the wall not only contained positive messages about money, but negative characters as well.
They included “greed” (貪), “proceeds of crime” (贓), “bribe” (both 賄 and 賂), “compensate” (賠), “thief” (賊), and even “toilet” (廁).
As of Monday, the characters – which amounted to around a quarter of all characters – had been covered up with styrofoam plates.
Previously, the exchange said the characters were chosen by the Chinese Museum of Finance. It said the museum also had a similar wall which did not avoid negative characters, so as to represent the uncertainty which surrounds money.
“The construction of the exhibition centre is a systemic work that requires constant improvement and renewal,” a Stock Exchange spokesperson told HKFP at the time. “The Hong Kong Stock Exchange has listened to various opinions, and will modify and perfect the exhibits on the bei-character wall.”
