In recent years, ICBC stands behind the commitment to serve real economy and follow the customers, lending intensive support to Chinese enterprises to stride boldly on the world stage. At the end of 2011, ICBC has disbursed USD 12.9 billion in loans to "go global" companies, playing a leading role of a financial institution to serve companies "go global".
Financial institutions in China are in a position to follow Chinese companies and spread effort on a global scale, said industry insiders. Based on this, ICBC builds up its presence overseas with a focus on aligning with China economy and globalization of companies. By end-2011, ICBC had a branch network of 239 fully licensed overseas subsidiaries spanning 33 countries/regions to deliver highly efficient and excellent services, and a global service network of 1,553 correspondent banks in 136 countries/regions spreading over five continents of Asia, Africa, Europe, America and Australia for the better delivery of services to customers in different markets across the world.
According to an executive with the Bank, currently, Chinese companies with overseas presence have a huge demand for diversified, integrated services such as corporate finance, investment banking and financial intermediary, instead of conventional services like deposit, loan and settlement. ICBC enhances its service capability through innovation on overseas products to cater to the special requirements of "go global" enterprises, leveraging its cutting-edge IT platform and full-licensed overseas subsidiaries.
In trade finance solutions, ICBC offers a full spectrum of trade finance products and services encompassing the supply chain finance, product portfolios (in home and foreign currencies, domestic and foreign trades) and processing trade security deposit ledger. The services help drive the transformation and upgrade of foreign trade companies and restructuring of foreign trade industry. In terms of clearing service, three main overseas clearing centers (US dollars, Euro and Japanese yen) are in place to offer safe, high-efficient settlement services in major world currencies for "go global" enterprises. In financing service, ICBC professional standard and product innovation are a boost to the blistering growth in many business areas of overseas mergers and acquisitions, project finance, export credit, syndication loan and overseas RMB finance. In cash management service, ICBC has built partnership with 2,232 customers. ICBC also sets up the Asia Pacific Cash Management Center in Hong Kong and China-Africa cash management platform with South Africa Standard Bank to provide "one-stop" cash management services around the world to "go global" enterprises, covering solutions for account management, cash pool in home and foreign currencies, financing and investment banking and risk management.
Worthy of note is that, ICBC offers innovative solutions designed for Chinese enterprises at different stages of overseas expansion. For example: ICBC promotes external guarantee service for nowadays Chinese enterprises who "go global" mainly through overseas investment, overseas merger and acquisition, contracting of foreign projects or international trade. By dint of its international creditability, ICBC supports Chinese enterprises to expand international market and their overseas growth. Another example: Chinese companies gather pace in contracting large foreign projects (railways, highway, electricity power) as the developing countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America increasing their infrastructure investments. In light of this, ICBC opens bank guarantees to extend credit to these Chinese companies for a number of large electro-mechanical projects including a loan to China National Electric Equipment Corporation to build a power plant in Moropule for The Republic of Botswana.