Citi Singapore said it has seen strong growth in RMB-related transactions in the past two years including doubling of renminbi (RMB) account openings and significant increase in volume of payment processing as more trade transactions between Singapore and China are settled in the currency.
The Peoples Bank of China (PBC) first introduced the RMB crossborder initiative in July 2009 to promote the internationalization of RMB.
Commenting on growth in the number of cross-border RMB transactions, Anita Loh, head of Product Management for Treasury and Trade Solutions, Citi Transaction Services for Singapore, said: Singapore houses a number of regional treasury centers of multinational corporations (MNCs) and the further relaxation of China regulations will act as a catalyst for the continued growth of RMB cross-border activities here. This, in turn, will strengthen Singapores position as a global trade hub.
Loh added: Citi’s extensive global presence and expertise in global liquidity management put us in a unique position to help corporate treasurers take advantage of opportunities that arise as a result of the internationalization of the RMB.
Citi recently completed its first cross-border RMB lending transaction for a European food company, which operates its treasury center in Singapore. The transaction was at the back of PBCs pilot scheme for RMB cross-border lending, which was introduced last year. The transaction, facilitated end-to-end by Citi China and Citi Singapore, is structured to optimize the surplus liquidity in the European food companys operations in China and thereby improve their overall group liquidity position.
Loh continued: To serve the needs of companies that have operations in China, a China desk was established in Singapore in 2010. Singapore was one of the first few countries within Citi to have started a China desk to assist our clients to optimize their treasury management which includes the cross-border usage of RMB.
Citi Singapores offshore RMB solutions for corporate treasurers include current accounts, payments, receivables, time deposits, trade services and trade financing solutions under Letters of Credit, along with spot and forward FX transactions, FX hedging solutions and structured deposits.
(JDC)