J.P. Morgan steps up in China
The Shanghai branch of J.P. Morgan will now provide renminbi (RMB) nostro accounts and clearing services to its clients globally in a response to an announcement made by the People's Bank of China regarding RMB international settlement. J.P. Morgan's clients will benefit from the cash management services that the bank has to offer, globally.
"This is a big step in providing a comprehensive service to support our clients' growth. It gives our clients more choice and flexibility to support their cross-border trade finance and clearing needs in China," said Lisa Robins, head of J.P. Morgan treasury and securities services China, in a statement. "With our ability to offer RMB international settlement, J.P. Morgan is well-positioned for continued growth in China."
Furthermore, J.P. Morgan sealed a mandate win with Charm Communications, a provider of integrated advertising agency services in China. The bank will act as the company's depository bank for its listed American depositary receipt (ADR) programme.
"We are extremely proud to have successfully launched our ADR programme, which confirms our ongoing commitment to the US investor market," said Zhou Wei, chief financial officer of Charm Communications, in a statement.
ANZ and EFIC ink deal
ANZ and the Export Finance and Insurance Corporation (EFIC), Australia's export credit agency, have signed a master working capital guarantee facility that aims to provide aid to Australian exporters. Under the facility, aid will be provided for ANZ's exporter clients who have overseas contracts, investments or subsidiaries and require financial support.
"This working capital guarantee supports financing requirements before and after shipment across a wide range of industries covering both goods and certain services," said Mark Evans, ANZ global head of trade and supply chain, in a statement. "The guarantee facility will assist small and medium-size businesses with their export finance needs and reflects ANZ's commitment to connecting customers across multiple markets under the bank's super-regional growth strategy."
JBIC signs MOU with Petrovietnam
The Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Vietnam Oil and Gas Group (Petrovietnam) at the Vietnam Investment conference in Tokyo. Under the MOU, JBIC will share relevant financial information with Petrovietnam regarding the exports and investments by Japanese firms that are in oil and gas production, oil refining, petrochemicals, power generation and other infrastructure development.
JBIC will provide financial support for Japanese firms in related Petrovietnam industries in order to strengthen ties between Japan and Vietnam.
Slib arrives in Asia
Financial solutions services provider Slib has expanded its risk management platform, Slib CRMS (clearing risk management system) into Asia, connecting to the Hong Kong securities clearing company (HKSCC) for the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong market. Slib CRMS is a risk management solution designed for securities clearing and has been widely used in Europe for cash clearing.
"In the current context of aversion to risk, Slib CRMS is a quickly evolving platform, with a constant growing scope in order to anticipate the requests of our customers," said Bernard Tardy, sales and marketing directors at Slib. "Integrating the HKSCC algorithms represents an important milestone in the evolution path since it is the first step from Europe to Asia."
