The novel Bank of China (BOC) Global Advanced Corporate Finance Centre concept got off the ground Tuesday, providing a financing platform for local investors participating in the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and Greater Bay Area (GBA) development projects.
The inauguration ceremony of the Centre was held Tuesday at the headquarters of the local BOC branch in Praça de Ferreira do Amaral. The function was attended by about 140 guests.
BOC Executive Director and Executive Vice President Lin Jingzhen, Secretary for Economy and Finance Lionel Leong Vai Tac and seven other representatives were on stage to inaugurate the virtual centre.
According to a BOC statement, the centre will provide global advanced corporate financial services for the world’s eight Portuguese-speaking countries (PSCs) and the nine cities in Guangdong and the special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macau that are participating in the GBA conurbation project, as well as the countries and regions participating in the BRI development drive in areas such as stock, mergers and acquisitions (M&A) and offshore financing, the statement added.
In a speech during the ceremony, Lin said the centre aimed to support the moderate economic diversification of Macau and promote the development of advanced corporate finance. The new centre could help diversify Macau’s economy and attract international institutions and talents to invest here.
Lin underlined that Macau is both a GBA and BRI core city, adding that the centre will be able to contribute not only China’s economic development but also to the economic development in the PSCs and other countries overseas by providing different financial support measures and offshore financial services.
Leong said in his speech that the finance sector is one of Macau’s major industries, adding that the total assets of the local financial industry stood at about 1.8 trillion patacas at the end of last year, adding that the assets have grown continuously for 17 years.
The central government’s GBA Outline Development Plan offers many options to better explore multilateral investment opportunities, thereby also contributing to Macau’s moderate economic diversification, Leong added.
Leong underlined that Macau is the only GBA city whose role it is to provide a service platform for trade and economic relations between China and the PSCs, adding he believed that many companies can take advantage of Macau’s special role to do business in the GBA.
Meanwhile, according to a statement by the Macau Government Information Bureau (GCS), Chief Executive Fernando Chui Sai On and BOC President Chen Siqing Tuesday signed an agreement at Government Headquarters about the local government’s cooperation with the Bank of China to facilitate Macau’s integration into the GBA through the bank’s services.
The statement said that the agreement was initiated by the BOC. After negotiations between the two sides, both decided to sign the agreement based on the principle of “complementarity, common development, and serving Macau”.
According to the statement, the agreement focuses, among other things, on financial human resources training, financial cooperation with the Portuguese-speaking countries, and the development of the local financial sector with its own characteristics.
The statement noted that Macau residents can use their Macau ID cards to open bank accounts and obtain bank cards in the GBA, based on the mainland’s integrated financial services.
Meanwhile, local residents can also use their ID cards to apply for such services in the over 500 BOC branches overseas, the statement added.
The statement underlined that these measures allow local residents to enjoy “the same status as mainland Chinese”, offering them the convenience of accessing bank services in the GBA and BRI countries, regions and cities.(Macaunews)
