Standard Chartered Bank has been granted a domestic fund custody licence by the China Securities Regulatory Commission – which the firm claims is a first for an overseas bank.
It will allow Standard Chartered China to directly participate in and provide custody-related services to investment products offered by domestic funds and asset managers in the world’s most populous country.
“China is of strategic importance to Standard Chartered,” said Bill Winters, group chief executive at the firm. “With the inclusion of Chinese shares by major world indices, China is already being recognised as a major financial market,” he added.
China boasts the third-largest equity and bond market in the world, with a total market size of almost $20 trillion (€17.6 trillion).
Margaret Harwood-Jones, global head of securities services and transaction banking at Standard Chartered, said: “With this licence, we are well-positioned to help investors navigate and capitalise on the opportunities in China’s rapidly growing capital market.”
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