F
126
5
China and again functioned as a centre providing credit facilities to finance China's modernization. Reflecting
this, the net liabilities of the financial sector of Hong Kong declined after the third quarter of 1984 until a net claim position eventually re-emerged. At the end of December 1985, net claims of HK$8,579 million were
recorded.
China's financial presence in Hong Kong
9:
China has maintained a strong presence in Hong Kong's financial sector, mainly through the 13 licensed China state-owned banks (CSOBs) in Hong Kong (Table 4). They are led by the Bank of China, and are commonly referred to as the "Bank of China Group". The head office of the Bank of China is in Beijing, with its origin
traceable to the Da Qing Bank under the Qing Dynasty.
Unger both the Nationalist and the Communist Governments,
the Bank of China remained administratively the foreign banking department, specialising in international trade and foreign exchange. However, in 1979, it was upgraded to an independent bank directly responsible to the State Council. The Bank of China maintains branches in Hong
Kong, Singapore, London, Manchester, Luxembourg, Tokyo, New York and Paris, but the Hong Kong branch remains the most important in the bank's international network.
10.
Of the other 12 banks, 8 are incorporated in
China, and the remaining four are incorporated in Hong Kong under the Hong Kong Banking Ordinance with Hong Kong
overseas Chinese holding minority equity shares.
CONFIDENTIAL #3