Bank of China to open office in Mumbai

Bank of China office in New York.

Reserve Bank of India has issued scheduled commercial bank license to the Bank of China. Bank of China is one of China's largest banks which is set to open its first branch in Mumbai.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had made a commitment to Chinese President Xi Jinping to allow Bank of China to set up branches in India when they met on the sidelines of the SCO summit in Chinese city of Qingdao last month. Bank of China will be the second Chinese bank to enter India after Industrial and Commercial Bank of China.

As China’s most internationalised and diversified bank, Bank of China provides a comprehensive range of financial services to customers across the Chinese mainland as well as 51 countries and regions. The Bank’s core business is commercial banking, including corporate banking, personal banking and financial markets services.

"By the end of 2017, Chinese investments into India added up to more than $8 billion, as India has become an important market for infrastructure cooperation among Chinese companies and a major investment destination," Gao Feng, Ministry of Commerce, People's Republic of China.

China had permitted Indian banks to open seven branches in China since 2006. The State Bank of India was the first to start operations in China where it has two branches. The Bank of India, the Bank of Baroda, Canara Bank, ICICI Bank and Axis Bank have one branch each.

- Chaitanya Kulkarni