Encouraged by various policies, cross-border finance is increasingly valued by commercial banks.
Recently, the “China Monetary Policy Implementation Report for the First Quarter of 2026” released by the People’s Bank of China shows that since this year, the central bank has actively promoted work related to cross-border trade and investment and financing service capabilities, and guided banking financial institutions to continue to provide cross-border financial services.
On the morning of June 3, China CITIC Bank held a press conference for the “Gathering Together in Central Asia” one-stop Central Asia cross-border comprehensive financial services solution in Urumqi. Many enterprises and financial institutions from equipment manufacturing, energy and other fields attended the conference.
“In the past, banks were relatively cautious about cross-border finance. However, with the support of the central bank and other relevant departments and the encouragement of relevant policies such as RMB internationalization, we have also increased the promotion of cross-border finance in recent years.” A person from a listed bank said that since this year, it is obvious that “peers are making great moves in ‘going global’.”
At the venue that day, representatives from the Cross-border Interbank Payment and Settlement Co., Ltd. (CIPS), China Export and Credit Insurance Corporation, CITIC Construction, the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region Branch of the People’s Bank of China, CITIC Bank and many other financial institutions were present and communicated with local governments and business circles.
Lu Jingen, business director of China CITIC Bank, said that as the construction of the China-Central Asia community with a shared future has entered a period of opportunity for all-round deepening, enterprises across the country are currently seizing the strategic opportunities of opening to the west. “The Central Asian market has become an important blue ocean for the international layout of Chinese-funded enterprises.”
CITIC Bank will rely on its global clearing layout and the group’s comprehensive advantages to continue to improve cross-border financial services and provide support for enterprises to explore the Central Asian market.
A reporter from China Financial News Agency learned that China CITIC Bank has already made plans in the Central Asian market.
In 2018, China CITIC Bank jointly acquired 60% of the shares of Kazakhstan’s Altyn Bank. The bank has now become an important part of China CITIC Bank’s overseas layout.
In addition to CITIC Bank, many banks have been actively developing cross-border financial services in recent years. In addition to state-owned banks and joint-stock banks, leading city commercial banks have also been making continuous moves.
The reporter learned from the Bank of China that at the end of May this year, the bank’s chairman Ge Haijiao went to Bangkok, Thailand, and communicated with local chambers of commerce and banking institutions on bilateral trade and two-way investment.
During the period, Bank of China and Pango Bank of Thailand signed a memorandum of cooperation – both parties have achieved a series of cooperation results in the fields of local currency settlement and clearing, transaction banking, and financial markets.
In the future, Bank of China will support Pangu Bank’s business expansion in China.
As for city commercial banks, recently, with the help of the National Development Bank’s special on-lending policy to stabilize foreign trade, the Bank of Nanjing has just issued a 2 million yuan loan at a preferential interest rate to a foreign trade company in Nanjing.
Affected by factors such as intensified competition in the international market and prolonged settlement cycles for overseas customers, this company is in urgent need of efficient and flexible financing support.
After learning about the company’s situation during the visit, Bank of Nanjing and China Development Bank joined forces to help the company relieve its financial pressure.
“In the past, large state-owned banks played the main role in providing enterprises with exchange rate avoidance and cross-border financing. However, under the background of RMB internationalization, the space of other banks is also further expanding.” Some people from listed city commercial banks said that in the context of the short-term improvement of retail finance, many banks are actively developing cross-border financial services for foreign trade enterprises, trying to find new profit points.
The reporter noticed that from the annual reports of some banks, the importance of overseas business has become increasingly prominent.
For example, Bank of China’s overseas operating income will reach 156.781 billion yuan in 2025, a year-on-year increase of 12.06%, accounting for 23.75% of total revenue.
Shanghai Pudong Development Bank’s overseas revenue reached 16.492 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of more than 50%, and its main overseas profits also achieved significant growth compared with the previous year.
So, with the support of policies, what cross-border financial work will banks carry out?
In this regard, relevant people from China CITIC Bank said that for Chinese-funded enterprises in Central Asia, the bank has integrated six major services, including cross-border settlement, special financing, exchange rate hedging, small currency services, country risk control, and territorial compliance, and can provide them with a full-cycle, integrated cross-border financial service system.
“At present, the core of banks’ cross-border financial services is to help open domestic and overseas accounts, help foreign trade companies to settle quickly, and reduce costs.” According to a person from a listed bank, banks have obvious advantages in fund clearing, but subsequent business such as investment and financing still needs to be carried out with other partners.
The reporter noticed that in order to do a good job in cross-border finance, some banks are also innovating their organizational structures – on May 27, the Bank of Ningbo Science and Technology Enterprise Cross-border Financial Service Center was unveiled in Yizhuang, Beijing.
It is understood that the Bank of Ningbo Science and Technology Cross-border Financial Service Center will select more than a hundred high-quality domestic and overseas firms, consulting companies, banks and other professional institutions to provide Beijing Yizhuang enterprises with a full range of services covering overseas investment and overseas finance.
“Last year, due to the impact of the tariff war and other aspects, our bank was relatively cautious and conservative about overseas business. However, as the situation has changed this year, the current attitude has become more active and we have taken greater actions in cross-border business.” A person from a major state-owned bank told reporters that at present, major banks still have obvious advantages over other banks in terms of treasury construction and system operation. Other institutions such as city commercial banks still need to develop their “internal skills” in cross-border finance and ensure the compliance of business operations.
