April 27, 2024

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[THE INVESTOR] The local branch of China Everbright Bank has applied for approval from Seoul’s financial regulator for an investment business license here, officials said on May 27.

The Seoul unit submitted the application to the Financial Services Commission early this month. At a meeting in late March, the FSC gave preliminary approval to the application for over-the-counter investment trading of derivatives based on currency and interest rate.

The financial regulator said it is checking whether the local branch of the Chinese lender is qualified to conduct such business here.

If it wins the final go ahead from the FSC, the Chinese lender will be able to start operations within six months.

China Everbright Bank’s Seoul branch went operational in 2016 after winning approval from the FSC the previous year. Last year, the branch posted a net profit of 9.7 billion won (US$8.9 million), a turnaround from a loss of 6.7 billion won a year earlier.

The local unit, if it wins the license, would be the second Chinese financial company to enter the South Korean securities industry. In June last year, the South Korean unit of China Merchants Securities won a business license from Seoul.

By Ahn Sung-mi and news wires (sahn@heraldcorp.com)