Bank of China Resumes Operations in MalaysiaBank of China Saturday reopened its doors in Malaysia with trial operations after 40 years.The bank's resumption of banking activities in Malaysia was made possible following the signing of a memorandum of understanding in November 1999 between China and Malaysia on the establishment of banking institutions in each other's territory. On a reciprocal basis, Malayan Banking Bhd is set to open its branch in Shanghai soon. On the first day of opening, many people poured in to the office of Bank of China located in downtown Kuala Lumpur to open their accounts. A senior bank official told reporters on the occasion that the reopening of Bank of China in Malaysia will facilitate business people of the two countries and help promote trade and economic cooperation between the two countries. Bank of China, established in 1912, started operations in Malaysia in 1939 but gave up its banking license in 1959 under the legal requirements of Malaysia. Bank of China is China's oldest bank with good international reputation as it has been listed in Fortune 500 for 11 consecutive years and was elected "Best Domestic Bank" in China by Euromoney from 1992 to 1999. By the end of 1999, the bank has 15,228 domestic branches and 557 overseas branches, with its total assets amounting to 2,903.9 billion yuan (about US$351.57 billion) and its total liabilities 2,755.5 billion yuan (about US$333.60 billion). . |
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