KARACHI – HBL became the first Pakistani bank to open a branch and serveclients in Beijing, China’s capital city.
The inauguration ceremony for HBL Beijing was attended by clients,regulators and senior executives of the Bank from across HBL’sinternational network. From Pakistan, Mr. Jameel Ahmad, Deputy Governor –State Bank of Pakistan, Mr. Sultan Ali Allana, Chairman – HBL, Mr. MuhammadAurangzeb, President &CEO – HBL, along with senior executives and HBL’scustomers, virtually joined the ceremony. HBL Beijing offers a full rangeof products & services for the Bank’s esteemed clients.
HBL remains grateful to the Governments of Pakistan and China and theregulators for the trust and confidence they have reposed on the Bank,through the opening of the branch.
HBL has created history by being the first and only bank from Pakistan tohave a branch in Beijing and one of the three banks from South Asia andMENA region to offer end-to-end RMB intermediation in China.Uponcommencement of business, HBL Beijing has become HBL’s second branch andits managing branch in China; both branches in Beijing and Urumqi areequipped with foreign exchange and RMB license to better facilitatecustomers’ requirements in multiple currencies.
HBL’s presence in China will allow the bank to interact with State-OwnedEnterprises (SOEs) and leading financial institutions involved in CPEC andacross Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) corridors. China is a very importantmarket for HBL not only in terms of the business in China and CPEC, butalso for Chinese companies working on projects in countries across the HBLnetwork.
Read Top Stories
Chairman HBL, Sultan Ali Allana said, “HBL’s journey in China began in 2005when we established our Representative Office in Beijing. This was followedby the establishment of branch operations in Urumqi in 2017 and today wemark the commencement of our branch operations in Beijing.It is anextremely proud moment for us as we enhance our China franchise, and welook forward to playing a leading role in facilitating regional trade andserving our valued customers throughout HBL’s international network.”
Commenting on the branch opening, Muhammad Aurangzeb, President & CEO, HBLsaid: “China is the second home market for HBL andwe will grow our businessin the country. China remains the lynchpin of HBL’s international strategy.We are grateful to the regulators for having granted us the branch license.They are very supportive of developing market-based capabilities andencouraging financial institutions like HBL to provide clientsbest-in-class product and services. HBL is the largest executor of CPECrelated financing in Pakistan,and the Bank’s presence in China has put usin a unique position to connect our clients across the HBL network directlywith the businesses in China.”
