OREANDA-NEWS. March 02, 2012. Since 2011, support to high-tech enterprises and promotion of high-tech financial services are the strategic focuses of ICBC Beijing Branch to improve financial services to high-tech companies, combining stewardship of Beijing's "Twelfth Five-Year Plan" to support the new generation of emerging industries (information technology, new materials, new energy). In 2011, ICBC Beijing Branch has disbursed over RMB 27 billion in loans to 330+ small enterprises engaged in different high-tech fields of communication, electronic devices, computers and bio-pharmaceutical, reported the press-centre of ICBC.

Given the tight credit supply in 2011, ICBC has reserved RMB 15 billion for lending to small-and-medium enterprises (SMEs) including high-tech companies, said an executive with the Branch. First priority is given to loans for small and mid-sized high-tech companies which are approved and released anytime in order to address their funding needs. To better support the "One Zone, Ten Parks" of Zhongguancun, ICBC Beijing Branch set up three SME Financial Centers in Haidian Park, clustered with the highest number of high-tech companies in Beijing, with an aim to provide key support to the high-tech companies in the Park. In 2011, the three centers have released RMB 2.53 billion of loans to 117 high-tech companies, which was a boost to the growth of high-tech companies in Beijing.

Mr. Zheng runs a high-tech firm primarily engaged in telecom value-added services. The company has developed an integrated information service platform system with independent intellectual property right, delivering all kinds of multimedia information efficiently. The company encounters many good projects during the courses of business. The payment parties are all top large state-owned companies. However, the company's liquidity cannot provide sufficient capital due to long cycles of collecting receivables, and the large cash shortfall caused by lack of adequate real estate for collateral.

After learning the situation, ICBC Beijing Zhongguancun Small Business Financial Service Center took the initiative to call Mr. Zheng and understood the product portfolio and sales of the company. The Center and the company worked together to keep track the contracts. The Center then offered an order financing solution tailored to the company without the use of real estate to secure the ICBC loan. In the end, the Center provided order financing of RMB 11 million to solve Mr. Zheng's problem of "inadequate collateral" and greatly relieved the company's financial burden. The solution won the applause from the project party and also helped Mr. Zheng's company establish a good reputation for the next move.

Mr. Zheng's company is a successful case and an epitome of ICBC Beijing Branch in helping Beijing's small and mid-sized high-tech enterprises. By adopting various measures to lend priority support to small and mid-sized high-tech enterprises, the Branch launches many innovative products to address their difficulty of obtaining bank loans. One plausible solution is to provide credit loan, loan pledged under intellectual property right to small and mid-sized high-tech enterprises. Another effort is the launch of a series of "Link" loans under comprehensive supply-chain finance services leveraging key enterprises, markets of the supply-chain. Meanwhile, ICBC Beijing Branch makes use of financial IT to launch "Online Loan Link", "Easy Finance Link" targeted at small and micro enterprises. Loans are released online so that all customers can enjoy more convenient services.