Standard Chartered eyes cross-border trade between Hong Kong, Asia, Middle East
- Growth in cross-border transactions helped bank’s Hong Kong unit report record US$1.2 billion in first-half pre-tax underlying profit
Standard Chartered will continue to tap opportunities arising from the growth in cross border transactions and trade for its clients in Hong Kong, Asia, the Middle East and Africa, according to the head of the lender’s Hong Kong office.
Among its latest moves, Standard Chartered’s Hong Kong CEO Mary Huen Wai-yi signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with three corporate customers during her visit to Vietnam last week.
Two of the MOUs were with Hong Kong companies that want help in setting up manufacturing in Vietnam, while the other was for a Vietnamese company that wants to expand in the Greater Bay Area, which integrates Hong Kong, Macau and nine cities in southern China into an economic powerhouse, Huen said in a media briefing on Wednesday ahead of her departure to Vietnam.
“We have found that many of our Hong Kong corporate customers want to expand in the Asean countries, with Malaysia, Vietnam, and Thailand being the most popular ones, while some are also exploring opportunities in Cambodia, Laos, and others,” Huen said.
“Likewise, we also found that many Asean companies want us to help them develop in the Greater Bay Area. Hong Kong, as a superconnector between China and the world, will be the best gateway for these companies to enter into the mainland markets.”
Huen was part of a delegation led by the city’s Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu, who toured three Southeast Asian countries – Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam – to promote trade and investments between Hong Kong and these countries. Huen only took part in the Vietnam leg.
“The increase in cross border trade and investments between Asia and the Greater Bay Area is going to be a key growth engine for Standard Chartered,” she said.
