DBS celebrates 10 years in Shanghai with official opening of relocated
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Plans to open sub-branch in Shanghai and expand presence in Yangtze
River Delta Region
SHANGHAI, NOVEMBER 14 2005 - DBS Bank (星展银行) marks its 10 years in Shanghai
with the relocation of its branch to Azia Centre, the newest office building
in Lujiazui (陆家嘴) of Pudong. Lujiazui is Shanghai's financial centre and
is home to the head offices of local and foreign banks.
DBS Shanghai Branch, which serves corporate and institutional customers,
offers comprehensive financial and advisory services including loans,
trade finance, deposits and project financing, syndicated loans and remittances
in both foreign currencies and RMB. The relocation to a bigger premise
is in line with DBS' plans to grow its operations and to better serve
its customers in Shanghai and the Yangtze River Delta region.
In 1998, just three years after it was set up, DBS was among 10 foreign
banks in Shanghai to receive a RMB licence to conduct RMB business with
foreign-invested enterprises and foreign individuals. Today, its Shanghai,
Beijing and Shenzhen branches are allowed to offer RMB services to Chinese
corporations, foreign-invested enterprises and foreigners in 18 designated
cities. For Shanghai, the services are also extended to the Jiangsu and
Vice Chairman of DBS Bank Ltd and Chairman of DBS Bank (Hong Kong) Limited
Frank Wong said: "China is an integral part of our blueprint to build
DBS into a premier bank in Asia. Our growing investments underscore DBS'
commitment to China. Over the years, we have steadily grown our business
and network in the Pearl River Delta region, Yangtze Delta region and
the Beijing-Tianjin Corridor. We choose to focus on these three areas
because they attract the largest share of foreign direct investments and
many of our customers are located in these regions.
"DBS has leading positions in its twin hubs, Hong Kong and Singapore,
Asia's key financial centres. Both Hong Kong and Singapore enjoy strong
bonds and cultural affinity with China. DBS is therefore in a unique position
to help our customers to leverage on growth and investment opportunities
in the three key economies of Asia.
"In addition, DBS has a strong regional banking franchise and wide correspondent
banking network. As a bank that is born and bred in Asia, we have a deep
understanding of Asia and the local cultures. As a specialist in banking
in Asia, we believe that DBS will be a partner that can help our corporate
customers to achieve a new level of growth."
Richard Leung, DBS' Country Head for China, said: "DBS is committed to
ensuring that our business offerings meet the banking and financial needs
of our customers in China, whether on the corporate front or on an individual
basis. We are now getting ready to enter into a new frontier in Shanghai.
We plan to set up a new sub branch in Shanghai in first quarter next year
that will offer personal and priority banking services. In May, DBS set
up its first consumer banking branch in Shenzhen. Leveraging on our extensive
experience in consumer banking, expertise and infrastructure in Singapore
and Hong Kong, we are confident that DBS' suite of products and services
will meet the needs of customers in China."
DBS also announced today that its applications to set up a branch in
Suzhou and a representative office in Hangzhou were approved. It expects
the Hangzhou Representative Office to start operation next month and to
open the Suzhou Branch by the first quarter next year. The expanded reach
in China will further strengthen DBS' position in the Yangtze Delta Region,
bringing it closer to its corporate and enterprise customers in that region.
It will also increase DBS' network in China to five branches and four
The last 12 months have been an exciting year for DBS China. DBS was
granted a licence to provide financial derivative products in China since
November 2004. It was the first foreign bank to establish a presence in
the fast-growing Dongguan city in December last year. In May, DBS officially
launched its consumer banking business in China at Shenzhen. Two months
ago, DBS Beijing received approval to offer RMB banking services to both
foreign-invested and Chinese enterprises and foreign individuals in Northern
Through its expanded network in China, DBS customers can also access
the Bank's expertise in capital markets and loan syndications in Hong
Kong and Singapore. DBS has helped many customers in China to raise funds
in the capital markets. One of DBS' most notable achievements was the
HK$609 million public listing for Li Ning Group, China's leading sportswear
company, in Hong Kong last year. It was also one of the co-lead managers
of China Construction Bank's HKD66 billion IPO last month, the largest
ever Chinese IPO issue.
It also arranged a 10-year RMB1.037 billion project financing for Vopak
Shanghai Logistics. The deal was the first long-term RMB project financing
deal arranged and funded by an international bank, and was named "Asia
Pacific Logistics Deal of the Year 2004" by Euromoney Project Finance
magazine. DBS has been well recognised as one of the top arrangers of
China syndicated loans for the past few years. This year, it was ranked
top three in Basispoint's China loans' league table for January to September.
In addition to DBS Shanghai Branch, DBS also has branches in Beijing,
Shenzhen and Guangzhou, and representative offices in Tianjin, Fuzhou
Headquartered in Singapore, DBS is one of the largest financial services
groups in Asia. The largest bank in Singapore and the fifth largest banking
group in Hong Kong as measured by assets, DBS has leading positions in
consumer banking, treasury and markets, asset management, securities brokerage,
equity and debt fund raising. Beyond the anchor markets of Singapore and
Hong Kong, DBS serves corporate, institutional and retail customers through
its operations in Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, India and The Philippines.
In China, the bank has branches and representative offices in Shanghai,
Beijing, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Fuzhou, Tianjin and Dongguan. The Bank's
"AA-" and "Aa2" credit ratings are among the highest in the Asia-Pacific
region. More information about DBS Group Holdings and DBS Bank can be
obtained from our website www.dbs.com.