Superintendent Yip Wing-lam from the Commercial Crime Bureau said it is the first time that local bank staff have been arrested in relation to alleged international money laundering syndicates.
He said the money involved is the biggest sum in recent cases of this kind, and HK$7.8 million in cash was seized from just one flat.
Yip said the suspects all worked as customer service officers, and they had allegedly approved false documents submitted by accomplices who opened 14 bank accounts.
The suspects are alleged to have received several thousand dollars as remuneration.
According to the force, 16 people from the mainland and Belgium posed as directors of trading or manufacturing firms, and submitted false documents, like fake ID cards and trading contracts, to the banks.
Officers said the investigation is still on-going and the force will continue to liaise with law enforcement bodies from the mainland and in Europe.
