Article by Li Guang, General Manager at Bank of China Macau
Bank of China Macau Branch (BOC Macau) was established on 21 June 1950, and over the past 70 years has made great strides, steadily growing into a full-service bank. In terms of major business indicators, including deposits, loans, and profits, BOC Macau makes up 40% of the market share in Macau, and has for some time been a market leader in the region. We provide a diverse range of services to our clients and enable local companies to thrive. The bank continues to deepen reforms and implement innovative mechanisms in line with Bank of China Group’s strategy – with a focus on business development, internal management, team building, personnel training, risk management and much more.
Serving Macau
In recent years, BOC Macau has utilised the advantages of globalisation in line with the diversification of Bank of China Group’s business strategy. The bank has established a Global Advanced Corporate Finance Centre and an Investment and Financing Platform for Portuguese-speaking Countries. BOC Macau has its expanded merger and acquisition (M&A) financing, infrastructure and project financing, as well as boosting offshore business through high quality, efficient financial services.
At present, we are focusing on developing opportunities within Portuguese-speaking countries, and extending our business to other regions, including, Central and South Asia, Russia, and Mongolia. The bank aims to provide more efficient cross-border settlement and financing services for foreign investment-oriented enterprises – conglomerates which are important to both Bank of China Group and international private equity companies.
The Chinese government actively encourages enterprises to expand globally, and BOC Macau recently provided services to approximately 600 enterprises to fuel their ambitions in this respect. We also generated more than $19bn in funds for the international M&A operations of Chinese companies. Among these are many benchmark projects, including:
- Shuanghui Group’s acquisition of the largest US meat supplier Smithfield.
- Successfully leading KKR to invest $350m in the syndicated project of Toutiao convertible bonds.
- Instrumental in CDH Investments and Grand Pharma (China) Co. Ltd. acquiring Australia’s Sirtex $850m syndicate project.
- Providing $400m of merger and acquisition financing for Ant Financial Services Group, a leading investment of Warburg Pincus fund.
- Completing the preparation and distribution of HKD2.5bn syndicated project of Shenzhen Mindray Group.
BOC Macau has also been working with the Macau government to support its SMEs financing plan, launching finance products such as Easy Money and Mortgage Easy. We are renowned for deploying fast, efficient and high quality loan services to help Macau’s SMEs achieve their business objectives. Approximately 1,000 SMEs have benefited from Bank of China Macau Branch’s loan services. In the last three years Macau has been hit by two devastating typhoons “Hato” and “Mangkhut”, which have significantly impacted local businesses. BOC Macau launched the typhoon disaster special loan assistance programme to help around 200 local SMEs to resume business as soon as possible after the disasters.
Driven by innovation
Along with maintaining sound day-to-day operations, BOC Macau continues to stay ahead of the curve through innovation. The bank has now established the Macau Branch’s Characteristic Financial Development Promotion Committee to coordinate its resources. Thanks to BOC Macau, many of the region’s first online products and services have been launched, including integrated payment initiative BOC PAY. Other Macau banking firsts included UnionPay Frictionless Payment; UnionPay App and the “Kiang Wu hospital online pre-registration of outpatient service”.
BOC Macau is working with the Special Administrative Region to promote the construction of a “smart city” in Macau, where locals and visitors from the mainland will enjoy secure, convenient and fast online payment services.
Following an in-depth study of market changes and client needs, BOC Macau used the bond business as one of the touchpoints for the region’s “featured finance” initiatives. It issued $1.8bn of “Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area” themed bonds and a CNY4bn ($572m) “Lotus” bond. BOC Macau assisted the Ministry of Finance to issue a renminbi (RMB) China government bond for the first time in Macau, which promoted the development of the Macau bond market.
BOC Macau has become a participating institution of the RMB cross-border interbank payment system (CIPS) and has actively established itself as an RMB clearing centre for Portuguese-speaking countries. We have established an agency relationship with 17 Portuguese-speaking countries around the world. The cumulative number of liquidations has reached 770,000, with a total amount of CNY6.4tn ($916bn). The RMB clearing network of the Portuguese-speaking countries has been established.
CSR in action
BOC Macau has continuously fulfilled its social responsibilities and established a corporate culture that considers the needs of the local communities. We have organised several activities such as a charity walk, a charity night and the “Golden Athlete Dialogue”. It set up Bank of China Macau Excellent Athletes Scholarships and raised funds for the “Four North Counties” poverty alleviation project in Shanxi Province.
In 2019, BOC Macau donated more than 14m Macau patacas ($1.7m) to colleges, primary and secondary schools, local communities in Macau, practicing its corporate principle “Rooted in Macau, Steadfast in Serving”.
BOC Macau has always attached great importance to the development of its employees, providing appropriate training and promotion channels for employees at all levels. In order to support the global ambitions of its young employees and boost their chances of professional success, BOC Macau regularly facilitates domestic and foreign education programmes. BOC Macau also fully subsidises its employees to pursue degree courses and professional qualifications, and, as a way of stimulating self-improvement, rewards employees who gain international professional qualifications.
BOC Macau will continue to adhere to its ethos of “Rooted in Macau, Steadfast in Serving”, utilising the region’s financial strength to open up new banking opportunities and to diversify the economy of Macau towards an exciting and prosperous future.
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