Unprecedentedly, ICBC, China Construction Bank, Bank of China and Agricultural Bank of China are all in the top five banks by Tier 1 capital worldwide. But the good news does not end there for Chinese banks, with many putting in a strong performance further down the ranking.
The former head of Banco Espírito Santo’s investment arm, José Maria Ricciardi, talks to Stefania Palma about the parent bank’s turbulent last days and how he hopes to exploit its established European network in his new position as the chief executive of Haitong Bank.
Ahead of the 2016 Asian Development Bank annual meeting in Frankfurt, the president of the ADB discusses China’s slowdown and reform agenda while underscoring that other parts of Asia – such as India – are still growing strongly. Interview by Stefania Palma.
Two months after finalising Haitong Securities' acquisition of Novo Banco's investment banking unit, now called Haitong Bank, the parent company's deputy CEO and the UK head of the new bank talk about the acquisition, their international growth plans and what a jittery renminbi means to them.
The renminbi is now the world's fifth most popular international payment currency, and has the fourth placed Japanese yen in its sights. Financial policy reform and the introduction of new clearing centres have been crucial to this rise, but will the troubles the Chinese economy has experienced in the past few months derail its progress?
China's One Belt, One Road initiative – building a new Silk Road between western Europe and China's east coast as well as improving the Maritime Silk Road – will be a major game changer for international trade. Stefania Palma assesses its possible impact.
Jiang Jianqing, the chairman of Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, explains how the largest bank in the world in capital, profits and assets is dealing with China’s economic slowdown, structural reforms and new privately owned, tech-savvy entrants in the banking sector.
China's economic growth is slowing and its banking sector is having to adapt to new policies aimed at bringing the market closer to the final reform of liberalising interest rates. Even the largest banks in the country have had to reconsider their strategies to face this evolving environment. How will they reinvent themselves? Stefania Palma reports.