The following press releases and media reports about Chinese companies were carried on October 31. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
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China Construction Bank (HKEx: 939) In Talks To Buy Brazil’s BicBanco: Source (English article)
A new deal that has seen a mid-sized Hong Kong bank purchased by a government entity of the southern city of Guangzhou is raising the interesting prospect that we could soon see a grab for similar banks by Chinese lenders looking to go global. As a financial center with strong cultural and geographic ties to the mainland, Hong Kong is a natural stepping stone for any Chinese bank that might want to move beyond its home turf, where politics dominate many decisions, into Asian markets where profits are the driving factor. That urgency to move abroad could become stronger in the next few years, as China signals it will soon open up the state-dominated banking sector to private investors. Read Full Post…
I had to smile when I read a new report that levels harsh criticism at Chinese firms for their lack of transparency, since anyone who lives and works in China knows that this kind of opaqueness is rampant in China’s secretive corporate culture. It’s interesting to note that the report takes aim at China’s state-run corporate sector, where transparency is almost a dirty word and publicly traded giants like China Mobile (HKEx: 941; NYSE: CHL) and PetroChina (HKEx: 857; Shanghai: 601857; NYSE: PTR) justify their stance by hiding behind their powerful and well-connected state-owned parents. But China’s publicly listed companies that come from the private sector are also often guilty of similar sins, with company founders often using their firms as personal fiefdoms. Read Full Post…
It’s a relatively slow news day as much of China returns to work after the weeklong National Day holiday, so I thought I’d have some fun trying to read between the lines of a low-key announcement about a new Greater China chief at ILFC, the world’s biggest aircraft leasing company owned by US insurance giant AIG (NYSE: AIG). The naming of industry veteran Peter Chang as ILFC’s new Greater China head certainly underscores the importance of the market, which is ILFC’s largest in the world. (company announcement) But more intriguingly, perhaps the announcement hints that a previously announced deal to sell ILFC to a group of Chinese investors may still be alive, despite some major turbulence that saw the buyers miss several deadlines earlier this year. Read Full Post…
Agricultural Bank of China (HKEx: 1288; Shanghai: 600188), the last of China’s “big 4” banks to go public, is now becoming the last of the quartet to eye a global expansion, with word that it’s weighing a bid for Hong Kong’s Wing Hang Bank (HKEx: 0302). I’m generally not a huge fan of AgBank, mostly because its history as a lender to farmers and other agricultural enterprises makes it the least market-oriented of China’s biggest 4 national lenders. But that said, this baby step onto the global stage looks like a relatively well conceived plan for perhaps some bigger steps in the next few years. Read Full Post…
Banking services have suddenly become the flavor of the day for China’s Internet firms, with e-commerce leader Alibaba forming a new tie-up with a major bank, as Suning (Shenzhen: 002024) moves closer to its aim of getting a formal banking license. This relatively sudden move by Internet firms into financial services comes as a slight surprise, since I haven’t really seen anything similar in the west. But that said, the financial services sector in most western markets is already well served by mature, market-oriented firms — a sharp contrast to China where the sector is dominated by less efficient state-run companies. Read Full Post…
A chapter in the courtship of China’s top 4 banks by western rivals is finally about to close, with word that Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) is looking to sell its remaining stake in China Construction Bank (HKEx: 939; Shanghai: 601939), China’s second largest lender. This looming divorce shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone, as it’s really just the final break-up between big western banks that once held out big hopes of entering China’s banking market through tie-ups with major state-run lenders. In an interesting twist to the story, we’re actually seeing some of the big Chinese banks make their own recent international tie-ups as they look to perhaps someday challenge the big western lenders on the global stage. Read Full Post…
The following press releases and media reports about Chinese companies were carried on August 30. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
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Carlyle, Shanghai Yupei To Invest $200 Mln On China Logistics Warehouses (Businesswire)
Sina (Nasdaq: SINA) Acquires Online Literature Site Xuan Guoke – Source (English article)
After several years of trying to figure out what to do with billions of dollars in problematic loans made by Chinese banks during the global financial crisis, Beijing may be close to a long-term solution with plans to create a special market for selling off those loans. Central leaders should be commended for finally addressing a problem that has been hanging over China’s banking sector for the last 2 years, putting the nation’s financial recovery at risk. At the same time, this latest rescue plan once again underscores the close relationship between China’s major banks and the central government, which often prevents them from behaving like true commercial banks. Read Full Post…
After noting last week that Bank of China (HKEx: 3988; Shanghai: 601988) was rapidly losing ground to rival big 4 lender ICBC (HKEx: 1398; Shanghai: 601398 ) on the global stage, the former is fighting back with its own baby step into Africa through a new tie-up with a local partner. The new alliance with South Africa’s Nedbank looks relatively lightweight on the surface, and probably won’t make a huge difference to Bank of China’s Africa business right away. But I still have to commend Bank of China for finally getting a bit more aggressive on the global stage, and would encourage it to make similar moves into other developing markets. It could also eventually buy a strategic stake in Nedbank, following ICBC’s successful example through its own similar tie-up with South Africa’s Standard Bank. Read Full Post…
China’s big 4 state-owned banks are a relatively orderly group in their home market, largely respecting historical boundaries set by Beijing. But industry leader ICBC (HKEx: 1398) is quickly emerging as the most aggressive player on the global stage, with word that it’s in talks to buy a major London-based commodities and forex trading operation. These latest talks are just part of a recent global acquisition spree by ICBC, but they look particularly interesting as they present one of the most direct challenges yet to big 4 lending rival Bank of China (HKEx: 3988; Shanghai: 601398). Read Full Post…
