After having received authorisation from the Chinese government in early July to establish a bank under Chinese law, Calyon in China (previously a branch) started operations as a full-fledged subsidiary on August 3. The new entity, whose head office is in Shanghai, is governed by a board of directors and combines the five branches already in existence (Shanghai, Beijing, Tianjin, Xiamen and Guangzhou).

Concretely speaking, this banking license should allow Calyon to broaden its range of activities. This range already includes commercial banking, structured finance, leverage finance, export credits, loan syndication and capital markets.

“We will be in a position to work more closely with our local partners and exploit new opportunities,” says Xavier Roux, Calyon China’s Senior Country Officer.

Access to capital markets and financing in local currency (RMB) should also be facilitated.