Foreign banks said they welcomed the new regulations issued by the Chinese
government this week which will fully open China's banking sector to foreign
competition on December 11.
Richard Yorke, president of Hong Kong and
Shanghai Banking Corporation's (HSBC) China operations, said the release of the
regulations marked a historical milestone for China's finance industry and also
marked the fifth anniversary of China's entry into the WTO.
HSBC Group
has 13 branches and 13 offices in China's mainland and a new Xi'an branch will
be launched before the end of this year.
Makoto Motooka, the Shanghai
branch director of the Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, expressed his respect for
the Chinese authorities in pushing forward the opening-up of its financial
sector.
Motooka said his bank plans to promote business in China and the
new regulations would provide strong support.
The new regulations issued
on Wednesday lifted restrictions on Renminbi and foreign-currency transactions
by solely foreign-funded banks and Sino-overseas joint venture banks.
"We hope to have the opportunity of discussing our future development
with the Chinese financial authorities," said Motooka.
He also expressed
his wish to enhance cooperation with local banks, saying it was necessary to
cooperate with local banks which have many branches and are familiar with the
local market.
To encourage overseas banks to register solely
foreign-funded banks in China, the new regulations set equal supervision
standards for overseas banks.
Yorke believes the local registration will
have a positive influence on China's financial market.
ABN Amro Bank
made a statement on the new rules, saying that they welcomed them and would give
them their full support.
The bank also said that it would apply for
registration of solely foreign-funded banks in the Chinese mainland and hoped to
have the opportunity of operating Renminbi services for local
residents.
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