Chinese bank to get licence soon

SBP to issue licence before Chinese PM’s arrival on December 17.

KARACHI: The government is poised to approve an application by the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) for starting operations in the country, a move that Islamabad hopes will herald closer commercial ties with Beijing.

The government sees a visit by Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao later this month as a chance to strengthen a long-standing alliance. State Bank of Pakistan Governor Shahid Hafeez Kardar said the central bank would grant the ICBC, China’s biggest bank, a licence to open a branch in Pakistan, ahead of Jiabao’s arrival on December 17.

“I would see a greater increase in economic activity between China and Pakistan,” he told Britain’s Financial Times newspaper. “The signal that goes out is that Pakistan is open for business.”

Kardar said the ICBC had applied for the licence several months ago to capitalise on opportunities in trade and project finance generated by a growing number of Chinese companies working in Pakistan.

The ICBC, which has a market capitalisation of $300 billion, is pursuing an ambitious expansion drive in the Middle East and in big cities across Europe.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 8^th, 2010.