Financial ties fuel Chinese companies' overseas expansion

Financial business leaders attending a major forum in Beijing have shared their insights on facilitating the global expansion of Chinese companies, and on how the overseas presence of these companies fosters shared prosperity.

"In London, there is capital seeking innovation. In China, there is innovation seeking capital," said Jack Perry, CEO of London Export Corp and chairman of The 48 Group, which has been promoting trade between China and the West since the 1950s.

Perry said he believes that robots, which he described as the "arms and legs of AI", will become some of China's most important future exports. LEC is collaborating with Chinese robotics firms on the distribution of their products in Europe, the Middle East and Latin America.

He noted that LEC assists Chinese companies with overseas data regulation compliance and in establishing research and demonstration hubs. "We aim to align Chinese ingenuity with Western investment and understanding."

The Annual Conference of Financial Street Forum 2025, on from Oct 27 to 30, is a platform for international financial exchange and cooperation. Attendees are engaging in in-depth discussions on topics such as global economic trends, financial governance, fintech, green innovation and risk control.

In recent years, the world's second-largest economy has excelled in exporting high-tech and environmentally friendly products, notably the "new three" — new energy vehicles, lithium-ion batteries and photovoltaic products. This trend has also created more demand for financial services in export destinations.

Beat Strebel, president of Swiss Reinsurance Co's China unit, said that with reliable quality and an accelerating shift toward NEVs, Chinese automobile manufacturers have started to succeed in penetrating the European market. The Swiss company has worked with its Chinese partners to develop localized solutions covering over 80 countries.

Strebel suggested that European retailers and insurers should cooperate with Chinese manufacturers to improve their understanding of product features, repair technologies and after-sales services for risk assessment. He also emphasized the need for Chinese carmakers to understand local insurance regulations.

Participating in China's green transformation, British multinational investment bank HSBC shared how it has assisted Chinese enterprises in going global and introduced expertise and capital from the global green finance sector into China.

The bank noted a cooperation case of providing long-term green financing for a Chinese battery manufacturer to build a factory in Europe. It also helping a Brazilian pulp and paper producer to issue bonds in China's interbank market.

On international settlement, Omar Hafeez, group head of international banking at First Abu Dhabi Bank of the United Arab Emirates, highlighted the bank's expansion of RMB usage to meet growing customer demand. This follows a memorandum of understanding signed earlier this year between the Central Bank of the UAE and China's Cross-Border Interbank Payment System to enhance payment cooperation.

He noted that alongside the dominant currencies, including the US dollar, demand for the use of local currencies in settlement and investment is rising, driven by the appeal of lower transaction costs, foreign exchange risk avoidance and reduced settlement uncertainties.

Xinhua - China Daily