By Chen Jialu (China Daily)
Updated: 2008-03-20 10:35

Japan's Mizuho Corporate Bank (MHCB) has announced its plans to branch out into four new cities on the mainland to further tap the nation's soaring corporate banking market.

The Tokyo-based bank will set up new branches in Qingdao, Guangzhou and Wuhan this year and Suzhou next year, said the head of MHCB's international banking unit, Hidetake Nakanura.

With its headquarters in Shanghai, the Mizuho Corporate Bank (China) Ltd was founded last June. It has five branches, in Beijing, Shenzhen, Dalian, Wuxi, and Tianjin.

With no retail banking services or small-sized deposit business, MHCB China mainly engages in corporate banking.

Nakanura said MHCB China, with inadequate deposit volume to support its enlarged lending business, is mulling over a plan to issue renminbi corporate bonds to help finance its expansion, but gave no details on the size and timetable of the bond issue.

With a total of 10 branches by next year, MHCB China aims to further expand its corporate business on the mainland by developing consortium loans and other new financial products, and expects its Chinese business to witness steady growth in the coming years.

"China's tightening monetary policies will, to some extent, affect our business," Nakanura said. "But we have lined up risk prevention measures and will adopt a more cautious stance this year."

The Japanese lender is also set to invest in some funds focusing on environmental protection, infrastructure construction and environmentally friendly technology in China.

The bank official clarified that it has no plans for acquisitions or strategic equity investment in Chinese commercial banks or trust firms.

Asia accounts for 45 percent of MHCB's overseas business, while China currently occupies around 30 percent of its Asian business, according to the bank.