Swiss perspectives in 10 languages

Bank of China gets approval to open branch in Switzerland 

Switzerland’s Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA) has allowed one of the largest state-owned commercial banks of China to open a subsidiary in Geneva.  


Geneva
Geneva Keystone / Martial Trezzini

Bank of China announced on Monday that it had received the greenlight after completing the registration process in June. 

The Chinese financial institution said it wants to “build a bridge for Sino-Swiss trade and investment and play a bridging role in promoting economic, commercial and financial exchanges.” 

Re-designated as a global systemically important bank in 2018, Bank of China employs nearly 300,000 people. It has a service network in mainland China as well as in 57 countries and regions around the world. 

At the end of the first quarter, the bank managed to increase its net profit by 2.7% to 53.99 billion yuan (CHF7.64 billion). 

In its statement, the bank evoked the history of Sino-Swiss relations.  

 “Switzerland is one of the first Western countries to have established diplomatic relations with China and the first European country to have signed a free trade agreement” with Beijing. 

Switzerland is China’s seventh largest trading partner in Europe. China is Switzerland’s third most important trading partner, after Germany and the United States. 

In March, Bern unveiled its first ever foreign policy strategy in relation to the emerging global power. China’s human rights record is an area of concern for both the Swiss government and NGOs. 


Popular Stories

Most Discussed

News

No Swiss bank in phase with environmental objectives

More

Swiss banks failing environment, says WWF

This content was published on None of the 15 major Swiss retail banks is meeting international climate and biodiversity targets, according to a ranking by WWF Switzerland.

Read more: Swiss banks failing environment, says WWF
UNRWA provides emergency assistance to just over one million Palestine refugees, or about 75 per cent of all Palestine refugees in Gaza, who lack the financial means to cover their basic food.

More

Lazzarini: no alternative to UNRWA in Gaza

This content was published on The only alternative to the UN Palestinian agency’s work in Gaza is to allow Israel to run services there, Philippe Lazzarini, UNRWA Commissioner-General, told reporters in Geneva on Monday.

Read more: Lazzarini: no alternative to UNRWA in Gaza

In compliance with the JTI standards

More: SWI swissinfo.ch certified by the Journalism Trust Initiative

You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!

If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.

SWI swissinfo.ch - a branch of Swiss Broadcasting Corporation SRG SSR

SWI swissinfo.ch - a branch of Swiss Broadcasting Corporation SRG SSR