Bank of China International
In Hong Kong banking, ‘international’ pretty much means China. And ‘Chinese bank’ pretty much means Beijing’s note-issuing giant Bank of China. And with Beijing’s $1 trillion One Belt, One Road initiative in the pipeline, clients know that they are buying BOCI’s extensive connections in China. That was seen in 2016 when BOCI brought Bank of Tianjin to the Hong Kong market.
Despite choppy market conditions, BOCI secured seven eclectic Chinese investors to anchor the issue. The Bank of Tianjin deal helped elevate BOCI to the number-one slot for Hong Kong IPOs in 2016. BOCI says it also did 75% of the FIG IPO deals in 2016, to be ranked top in that sector in overall amounts raised. And BOCI continued to elevate the renminbi as an international reserve currency, most notably with the Rmb3 billion ($440 million), three-year bond for China’s ministry of finance to list at London Stock Exchange, the first Chinese sovereign renminbi bond issued and listed outside China.
Led by its formidable Hong Kong-based chairwoman Madam Tong Li, Bank of China International is the Chinese bank that the traditional big banks in the special administrative region follow most closely. And with good reason.