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Borneo Bulletin Yearbook 2020
BANK OF CHINA
Bank of China was established in Hong Kong
in 1917. The financial giant’s global operations
are managed by Bank of China (Hong Kong)
Limited (BOCHK), a subsidiary of Bank of
China Group. With a history spanning over 100
years, BOCHK is one of the largest commercial
banking groups operating in Hong Kong with
branches and representative offices spread
around the world.
Further expanding its influence in Southeast
Asia, BOCHK opened its first branch in
Brunei Darussalam in December 2016. The
bank offers comprehensive banking services
to individuals and corporations, including
corporate banking, personal banking, RMB
services, cash management and trade
finance, among many others.
Following China’s investments into Brunei, the
establishment of a BOCHK branch in Brunei
signifies the country’s strong bilateral relations
with China, especially in trade and finance. It
also illustrated BOCHK’s efforts to expand into
the ASEAN market, a key region in China’s
One Belt, One Road (OBOR) initiative. BOCHK’s
role is to enable and encourage investments
from Chinese companies to enhance local
infrastructure, thus cementing Brunei’s status
as a key figure in the OBOR initiative.
According to General Manager Wang Xiao in
an interview on July 6, 2019, BOCHK has made
significant progress in the local market since its
establishment. On the subject of Hengyi’s oil
refinery and petrochemical plant, he said the
Hengyi Group provides an opportunity for the
bank to cooperate upon commencement of the
plant’s operations.