UBI Chairman Mavila Vishwanathan Nair lights a candle at the bank's opening ceremony, watched by Indian Minister State for Finance Pawan Kumar Bansal (left) and L.D. Ralte, Consul-General of India in Hong Kong

State-owned lender Union Bank of India (UBI) has opened its first full-service overseas branch in Hong Kong, offering a variety of products and services to corporations and individuals. It will also be targeting major businesses in wholesale banking, loan syndication, trade finance and other trade related sectors and retail banking.

Officiating at the opening ceremony last month, Indian Minister State for Finance Pawan Kumar Bansal said UBI "has taken a major initiative for global business by opening its first branch in Hong Kong." This, he added, has transformed UBI into "a global player, to take the bank business to greater heights."

UBI Chairman and Managing Director Mavila Vishwanathan Nair said opening the Hong Kong branch will allow the bank to explore opportunities emerging from growing Indo-Chinese trade relations. Trade between the two largest emerging markets in Asia rose 56 per cent to US$38.7 billion last year.

"To finance the rapidly growing trade between these two giant economies, Hong Kong is the natural choice with its state-of-the-art infrastructure and well-developed financial market with the presence of the world's leading players. Establishing the Hong Kong branch is also a major step in our bank's plan to expand its global presence," Mr Nair said.

International network planned

The UBI Chairman told the Financial Times that the bank plans to open offices in 10 countries by 2011, and would start offering advisory services to corporate clients in about a year, with the ultimate goal of going into investment banking. The move is the first step in the bank's further expansion in the region and beyond. One of the most profitable lenders in India, UBI plans to build a larger international network. UBI is exploring the possibility of opening more branches in Asia, Africa, Europe, North America and Oceania. UBI has also applied to upgrade a representative office in Shanghai and open offices in Beijing, Guangdong Province and in Sydney.

UBI was established in Mumbai in 1919. Its total business amounted to US$44.8 billion as of March, with an asset base of US$30.9 billion. The bank has more than 2,500 outlets with pan-Indian presence and plans to open 400 more branches in the current fiscal year. UBI boasts a customer base of more than 20 million. It is the first major nationalised bank in India to allow customers to perform banking transactions at any of the branches, and aims to be one of the top three national banks in India by 2012.

Acting Director-General of Investment Promotion at Invest Hong Kong, Charles Ng, welcomed UBI's presence in the city. "We are delighted that Union Bank of India has chosen Hong Kong as its bridgehead in its regional and global expansion strategy. It is a great vote of confidence in our role as a global financial centre, which recently has been further strengthened by some leading financial institutions' decision to base global business and functions in Hong Kong." (Source: InvestHK)
 
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