Stanbic Bank, ICBC celebrate 10 years of partnership
AMBROSE GAHENE
Stanbic Bank and the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) on Thursday celebrated ten years of partnership by hosting a high level business forum in Kampala for members of the Ugandan-China Business community.
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ICBC, the world’s biggest bank, is the single largest shareholder in Standard Bank group having acquired a 20.1 per cent stake in 2008.
Delivering opening remarks at the forum, the Chief Executive of Stanbic Bank Uganda Patrick Mweheire lauded the partnership between the two financial giants which he said was a prime example of how strategic cooperation can deliver both tangible business and social results when likeminded partners come together.
He continued: “China is Africa’s most important trading partner having generated over 300 billion dollars worth of business in 2017 alone. This figure has grown nearly tenfold over the past decade and is one of the main reasons the continent has witnessed such a rapid economic growth over the period."
Zhao Xiufeng, Counselor, Economic and Commercial Counsellor’s office People’s Republic of China in the Republic of Uganda lauded the relationship between the two partners.
“In the past 10 years, the two banks have been committed to serving China-Africa economic and trade cooperation and working hard to build a bridge for China-Africa financial cooperation. On the one hand, ICBC's head office directly provides financing to Chinese companies in Africa; while on the other, Standard Bank provides Chinese companies with daily financial services across Africa," she said.
Talking about some of the investments made by ICBC across Africa, Mr Sun Gang’s ICBC’s Deputy Chief Executive Officer noted: “ICBC had supported 30 large scale projects- worth over USD 33 billion across the continent so far including the Kaka hydropower project in Angola valued at USD 4.5 billion. One such product is the Renminbi (RMB) account which has allowed businesses in China and Uganda to save money by not suffering exchange rate losses.”
