Bank of India opens branch in Beijing

The BOI Representative Office was inaugurated by Indian Ambassador to China, Nalin Surie.

The Bank of India (BOI) has become the first Indian bank to set its foot in the Chinese capital, with its Representative Office being inaugurated here.

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India's leading commercial bank, BOI, which ventured into China in January 2003 by opening its first Representative Office in the southern city of Shenzhen, has become the first Indian bank to have two offices on the mainland of China, BOI Chairman and Managing Director, M Balachandran said.

The BOI Representative Office was inaugurated by Indian Ambassador to China, Nalin Surie.

The Beijing Representative Office of BOI will serve as a liaisoning and consultancy for Indian and Chinese companies but will not conduct banking operations, official sources said.

The Shenzhen Representative Office of the BOI has received license to conduct normal banking operations from China's banking regulator, China Banking Regulatory Commission (CBRC), Balachandran said.

The Sino-Indian trade volume reached 18.7 billion US dollars last year and is expected to jump to 20 billion dollars this year. China is now the second-largest trade partner of India.

BOI would like to tap the immense potential of the growing India-China bilateral trade, Balachandran said.