Foreign banks and other investors have poured about $20bn into more than 18 Chinese banks and plenty more deals are still in the pipeline. Clearly, many are keen to stake out claims in the $1700bn industry before China fully opens the industry to foreign competition by the end of this year, in keeping with its market-opening commitments to the World Trade Organization.
“It’s the fashion right now. If you are not doing it, you are out of the loop,” says Lawrence Brahm, chairman of NAGA Group, an investment consulting company in Beijing. HSBC, Citigroup, Bank of America and Royal Bank of Scotland are just a few of the many banks that have made multi-billion dollar commitments as they jostle for global dominance.
