(12 April 2005 – China) Royal Bank of Scotland is reportedly in discussions with Bank of China with a view to taking a 15 to 20 percent stake in the Chinese Bank.The stake could cost RBOS somewhere in the region of US$3 to 4 billion.
Bank of China, which is hoping to list on the country’s stock exchange later this year, has been a target for a number of foreign banks, including Deutsche, UBS and Bank of America.
Bank of America is very serious about the Chinese market and is reportedly willing to sink as much as US$1 to 2 billion into the market.
In further news, Dutch banking giant ING has obtained US$50 million of China’s qualified foreign institutional investor (QFII) quota. China has so far rubber stamped US$3.8 billion of QFII licenses, allowing foreign banks to trade in the local currency.
Other banks that have been awarded licenses include HSBC, UBS, Citigroup, Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs.