Mr. Michel Pébereau, Chairman of BNP Paribas Group, upon his visit to China, announced today the official opening and establishment of BNP Paribas (China) Limited in China in accordance to the regulatory approval granted from the China Banking Regulatory Commission.
BNP Paribas (China) Limited is a wholly foreign-owned enterprise bank - WFOE bank, locally incorporated in China. Its predecessor is International Bank of Paris and Shanghai ("IBPS"), a joint venture bank between BNP Paribas and Industrial & Commercial Bank of China ("ICBC") formed in 1992. Following BNP Paribas' acquisition of the equity interest in IBPS previously held by ICBC, IBPS has been renamed as BNP Paribas (China) Limited.
BNP Paribas (China) Limited is the first of its kind in terms of transformation from a joint-venture bank into a WFOE bank locally incorporated in China. It is currently the only WFOE bank in China. The transition has been entirely seamless and smooth that has enabled BNP Paribas to continue to serve its clients without any interruption. BNP Paribas appreciates the high level of support provided throughout by the Chinese regulators and its partner, ICBC in making the transformation a success.
Compared to its predecessor, BNP Paribas (China) Limited operates on a wider business platform in terms of an increased capital base of RMB555 million and an expanded scope of business. BNP Paribas (China) Limited is to conduct RMB business with foreign invested enterprises, foreign representative office, foreign nationals and as well as certain RMB business with non-foreign invested enterprises. It can also handle all foreign currency businesses for all types of customers.
In the very near future, BNP Paribas (China) Limited intends to increase its capital further and to extend its business scope in line with banking regulation and market demand. BNP Paribas (China) Limited is also ready to launch new activities in which BNP Paribas has been successful in other parts of the world, in particular, Fixed Income products including fixed income derivatives, interest rate swaps, currency swaps, domestic bond trading and distribution, as and when permitted by the PRC laws and regulations.
Senior officials from the China Banking Regulatory Commission, the French Consulate and other government departments attended the opening ceremony. Mr Michel Pébereau, Chairman of BNP Paribas Group, commented, "The co-operation with ICBC in the joint-venture bank during so many years has been a very fruitful one which has enabled BNP Paribas to acquire extensive experience in banking operation and services in the PRC. It has been a successful partnership generating a good level of profitability on quality assets year after year. We thank ICBC and its Chairman Mr. Jiang Jian Qing for their long-term cooperation with our bank and support in this transfer, and look forward for new business opportunities with ICBC."
He further commented that, "With the opening of new markets following China's entry into the WTO, BNP Paribas sees tremendous opportunities for expanding the scope of business and strengthening its presence in China by way of establishing a wholly owned bank. We are very pleased to be able to play an active role in the development of the financial markets in China."
BNP Paribas traces its presence in China back to 1860 and, with over 140 years of history in China, BNP Paribas considers the establishment of BNP Paribas (China) Limited an important milestone signifying the Group's continuous long-term commitment in China.
_________________________________________
About BNP Paribas
BNP Paribas is a European leader in banking and financial services, with a leading position in Asia and a growing presence in the United States. It is the number one bank in terms of net income and market capitalisation in the Euro Zone. The group has one of the largest international banking networks present in 85 countries and has over 85,000 employees worldwide.
About BNP Paribas in China
BNP Paribas can trace its presence in China back to 1860, when it first opened an office in Shanghai. BNP Paribas became the first European bank to open a representative office in Beijing in 1980. Then in 1992, BNP Paribas opened the first Sino-foreign joint venture bank in Shanghai, the International Bank of Paris and Shanghai (IBPS), with Industrial & Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), one of the largest commercial banks in China. In 1997, IBPS was approved to deal in RMB. In 2003, BNP Paribas established BNP Paribas (China) Limited, a WFOE bank locally incorporated in China, to expand the scope of its services in China.
Parallel to BNP Paribas (China) Limited, BNP Paribas has an existing network of branches and representative offices in China established during the 1990s.
With the opening of market following China's entry into the WTO, BNP Paribas has also been involved in two major projects in both the securities and asset management industries.
BNP Paribas (China) Limited is a wholly foreign-owned enterprise bank - WFOE bank, locally incorporated in China. Its predecessor is International Bank of Paris and Shanghai ("IBPS"), a joint venture bank between BNP Paribas and Industrial & Commercial Bank of China ("ICBC") formed in 1992. Following BNP Paribas' acquisition of the equity interest in IBPS previously held by ICBC, IBPS has been renamed as BNP Paribas (China) Limited.
BNP Paribas (China) Limited is the first of its kind in terms of transformation from a joint-venture bank into a WFOE bank locally incorporated in China. It is currently the only WFOE bank in China. The transition has been entirely seamless and smooth that has enabled BNP Paribas to continue to serve its clients without any interruption. BNP Paribas appreciates the high level of support provided throughout by the Chinese regulators and its partner, ICBC in making the transformation a success.
Compared to its predecessor, BNP Paribas (China) Limited operates on a wider business platform in terms of an increased capital base of RMB555 million and an expanded scope of business. BNP Paribas (China) Limited is to conduct RMB business with foreign invested enterprises, foreign representative office, foreign nationals and as well as certain RMB business with non-foreign invested enterprises. It can also handle all foreign currency businesses for all types of customers.
In the very near future, BNP Paribas (China) Limited intends to increase its capital further and to extend its business scope in line with banking regulation and market demand. BNP Paribas (China) Limited is also ready to launch new activities in which BNP Paribas has been successful in other parts of the world, in particular, Fixed Income products including fixed income derivatives, interest rate swaps, currency swaps, domestic bond trading and distribution, as and when permitted by the PRC laws and regulations.
Senior officials from the China Banking Regulatory Commission, the French Consulate and other government departments attended the opening ceremony. Mr Michel Pébereau, Chairman of BNP Paribas Group, commented, "The co-operation with ICBC in the joint-venture bank during so many years has been a very fruitful one which has enabled BNP Paribas to acquire extensive experience in banking operation and services in the PRC. It has been a successful partnership generating a good level of profitability on quality assets year after year. We thank ICBC and its Chairman Mr. Jiang Jian Qing for their long-term cooperation with our bank and support in this transfer, and look forward for new business opportunities with ICBC."
He further commented that, "With the opening of new markets following China's entry into the WTO, BNP Paribas sees tremendous opportunities for expanding the scope of business and strengthening its presence in China by way of establishing a wholly owned bank. We are very pleased to be able to play an active role in the development of the financial markets in China."
BNP Paribas traces its presence in China back to 1860 and, with over 140 years of history in China, BNP Paribas considers the establishment of BNP Paribas (China) Limited an important milestone signifying the Group's continuous long-term commitment in China.
_________________________________________
About BNP Paribas
BNP Paribas is a European leader in banking and financial services, with a leading position in Asia and a growing presence in the United States. It is the number one bank in terms of net income and market capitalisation in the Euro Zone. The group has one of the largest international banking networks present in 85 countries and has over 85,000 employees worldwide.
About BNP Paribas in China
BNP Paribas can trace its presence in China back to 1860, when it first opened an office in Shanghai. BNP Paribas became the first European bank to open a representative office in Beijing in 1980. Then in 1992, BNP Paribas opened the first Sino-foreign joint venture bank in Shanghai, the International Bank of Paris and Shanghai (IBPS), with Industrial & Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), one of the largest commercial banks in China. In 1997, IBPS was approved to deal in RMB. In 2003, BNP Paribas established BNP Paribas (China) Limited, a WFOE bank locally incorporated in China, to expand the scope of its services in China.
Parallel to BNP Paribas (China) Limited, BNP Paribas has an existing network of branches and representative offices in China established during the 1990s.
With the opening of market following China's entry into the WTO, BNP Paribas has also been involved in two major projects in both the securities and asset management industries.