China Post Savings Bank (CPSB), the country's fifth-biggest lender, officially launched in Beijing today, splitting the banking business from its postal system.

Approved by China Banking Regulatory Commission (CBRC) to open for business last December, the new bank is expected to focus on retailing and intermediary businesses and offer basic financial services in both urban and rural areas.

Related readings:  BOC forecasts net profits up 50% in 2006  Professionals make hay as banking sun shines  Interest rate up to check surging loan growth  China raises benchmark interest rates by 0.27%, 03/2007

The Shanghai Securities News reported the CPSB completed registration on March 6, with total registered capital of 20 billion yuan (2.6 billion U.S. dollars).

With its head office in Beijing, the new bank was preparing to open branches and sub-branches in the first half of this year, the sources said.

The inauguration marked a substantial step in China's financial reform, said Liu Andong, chairman of board of the CPSB, at the inauguration.

"(The establishment of the bank) will enhance the development of China's banking sector as well as the vast rural areas," he said.

But he declined to give further details.

Analysts say the establishment of the bank will improve financial services in rural areas by expanding financing channels.

By the end of 2006, postal savings in China amounted to 1.6 trillion yuan, the highest after that of the "big four" state-owned commercial banks -- the Industrial and the Commercial Bank of China, the Bank of China, the China Construction Bank and the Agricultural Bank of China.

Post offices boasted 36,000 outlets nationwide, almost 60 percent of them in rural areas, and 270 million account holders.

1

2

(For more biz stories, please visit Industry Updates)