OREANDA-NEWS. October 17, 2011. Bank of China's Bulk Commodity Financing Center (Singapore) and Forfaiting Center (Singapore) were established concurrently, as the first Chinese bank to set up overseas bulk commodity financing center and Forfaiting center. Wei Wei, the Chinese Ambassador to Singapore, Yue Yi, Vice Executive President of Bank of China and Li Xiuting, Assistant Director of the International Enterprise Singapore were present at the inauguration ceremony, reported the press-centre of Bank of China.

"Located in the center of the Asian-Pacific region, Singapore plays an important role in the bulk commodity trading and secondary market of trade financing." said Yue Yi at the inauguration ceremony, "Since the establishment of its Singapore Branch in 1936, Bank of China has devoted itself to serving Sino-Singapore economic and trade cooperation and promoting the development of local financial markets. It keeps learning Singapore's advanced experience, improving financial services, and providing customers from all walks of life with comprehensive financial products including deposits and loans, trade finance, credit card, funds trading and wealth management services, thus winning the extensive customer base and a good market image". By establishing the two centers in Singapore, Bank of China will organically integrate its business resources of the relevant Asian-Pacific institutions, give full play to its integrated advantages, to promote the development of relevant business in the region including Singapore Branch and improve comprehensive managerial and administrative expertise of the group. This is an important measure taken by Bank of China to implement the strategic principle of "Innovation Development, Transformation Development and Cross-Border Development", also a significant step to improve overseas strategic layout and become the best trade financial service bank in the world.

The two centers are set up at Bank of China Singapore Branch. Drawing upon Singapore's prosperous bulk commodity trading market and the secondary trading market of trade financing, the centers will devote to developing bulk commodity financing business and intensive distribution and buyout of trade financing assets in the Asian-Pacific region. On one hand, it will strive to establish an extensive cooperative bank network covering global market participants, build diversified channels for the risk distribution and scale adjustment of Bank of China's regional trade financing assets, and gradually set up an improved regional risk portfolio management and risk distribution intensive management system; on the other hand, it will take full advantage of Singapore's favourable geographical position to tap new markets and customers, and improve the bulk commodity financing products R&D and the risk management, to establish a professional marketing, operation and management system, and optimize full-line bulk commodity financing products covered by both a commercial bank and an investment bank, and improve customer services.

As a commercial bank with the largest international settlement business volume worldwide, Bank of China has devoted itself to making breakthroughs and innovation in the international settlement and trade financing sectors. While promoting business development and building core competitiveness, the bank is dedicated to innovation and determination, thus achieving the largest cross-border RMB settlement business volume worldwide and the largest two-factor export factoring business volume worldwide. It is foreseeable that with the two centers, Bank of China will further make itself integrated in the international financial market, and play its role as a bridge to Sino-Singapore economic and trade exchange and financial cooperation, making greater contributions to the prosperity of Singapore's financial market and the economic and trade relationship between China and ASEAN (Southeast Asia).

The Southeast Asia region is a top priority in Bank of China's overseas business development strategy. Drawing upon the opportunity of establishing Forfaiting Center and Bulk Commodity Financing Center, Bank of China will enhance Singapore's role in coordinating regional operation in Southeast Asia, improve its professional and intensive operation, and strengthen the integrated risk management in the region. In the future, Bank of China will continue to develop key product and business platforms covering bank card, wealth management and personal credit business in Singapore, and strive to be the first bank to make breakthroughs in various business in Southeast Asia.