Bank of China tells the London story
Aug 23, 2008
Think London, the foreign direct investment agency for London, and Bank of China co-hosted a lunch for VIPs of leading Chinese enterprises. The two hosts introduced guests to the investment environment in London, highlighting the international financial services expertise the city offers to Chinese companies looking to expand their operations to the UK.
Michael Charlton, Chief Executive of Think London, said: “London is the leading global financial services centre and the single most internationally focused financial marketplace. With every major bank and financial institution in the world having a presence, London is uniquely placed to offer Chinese business access to global markets. Chinese firms are now recognising the open approach of London and using the UK’s capital as a natural step to globalise their businesses.”
Madam Zhang Yanling, Vice President of Bank of China, said: “ Bank of China was formally established in 1912, it is one of the oldest and most internationalized commercial banks in China. London Branch is our first overseas operation, and next year it will celebrate its 80 years anniversary. Now, the Branch has offices in the West End of London, Manchester, Glasgow and Birmingham. Last year, the UK Financial Services Authority approved the establishment of the Bank of China (UK) Limited. A few days ago, the UK Subsidiary successfully purchased 30% of the share capital of Heritage Fund Management in Geneva which further extends it business in continental Europe. Benefiting from the increasing growth of the economic and trade relations between Britain and China, BOC(UK) Limited and the London Branch, operating in parallel, will provide our clients with more comprehensive, more specialized, leading-edge banking services and products.”
Mayor of London Boris Johnson said: “London is the world’s
leading financial centre expected to see significant growth in the coming years. With major
improvements to our transport infrastructure planned over the next decade, including Crossrail
connecting Heathrow Airport in the West with the City in the east in around 35 minutes, London will
be one of the best connected cities in the world.
“Beijing has provided an excellent opportunity for me and others to meet leading Chinese business people and we look forward to giving them a very warm welcome when they visit our great city and show them the exciting opportunities London offers to investors from the far east and why it is simply the best place from which to do business with Western economies.”
London has the largest foreign exchange market in the world, with an average daily turnover of $2,096 billion or 32% of the global market; accounting for more than New York and Tokyo combined. The city is also home to the world's largest fund management centre, with over $7 trillion of funds under management, 25% of which come from abroad. As the focal point for the UK Venture Capital market (the largest and most developed in Europe), London accounts for over 25% of the world’s private equity investment; and this is second only to the USA.
The city is also the market of choice for international firms raising capital. There are currently 20 Chinese and Hong Kong SAR companies listed, and traded on, the main market of the London Stock Exchange with a further 68 companies trading on AIM, the market for smaller fast growing companies. In 2007 alone, 17 Chinese companies joined AIM raising a total of $1.9bn.
Since 2000, Think London has assisted over 60 Chinese companies in moving their European operations to the capital, including ZTE, China Telecom, Crystal Digital, Shanghai General Electronics Group, China Eastern Airlines, CNOOC, CCTV, China Netcom, PetroChina, and China Export and Credit Insurance.
Click here to read the Chinese version of this media release
