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Supplement: Bank of China honored for 'Heroic' earthquake relief
(chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2009-03-03 18:33

The Bank of China accordingly offered the best medical treatment possible for Tang Yulan. Multiple leaders, including Xiao Gang and Li Lihui, chairman and president of the head office respectively, came to the hospital to visit Tang and encourage the belief that conquering fear and persevering will bring victory.

Leaders of the head office were in constant communication with leaders of the hospital, arranging every detail, ranging from drug administration and medical device usage to treatment methods. Under the watchful eye of leaders at all levels of the bank, and relentless experts of the medical team, Tang Yulan eventually recovered.

First Time Resuming Business Activity

After the occurrence of the disaster, the Bank of China immediately snapped into action. On the evening of the day the earthquake occurred, the Earthquake and Disaster Relief Leading Group of the Bank of China was quickly established under the auspicious gaze of leaders of the head office, and a rapid work ethic was launched all around.

On the next day, the Leading Group rushed to such disaster regions as Dujiangyan and Maizhu, where the earthquake had dealt severe damage, to guide sub-branches in disaster relief and reconstruction. Meanwhile, the head office also held an emergency work conference to create employment for risk and disaster relief, protect the lives and property of people and employees in disasterstricken areas, minimize the loss caused by the earthquake, and ensure the normal operation of various businesses. In the following days, eight leaders from the head office visited the disaster area to better assess the situation and guide rescue efforts.

While carrying out disaster relief efforts, the Sichuan Branch of the Bank of China also attempted to resume business as soon as possible so it could offer necessary financial services to the disaster-stricken people. The day after the earthquake, 71 percent of Sichuan Branch's outlets resumed business. Before the eve-ning of May 16, 2008, more than 90 percent of the outlets had resumed business.

On the basis of ensuring a smooth corporate payment channel, the Sichuan Branch also simplified formalities and set up "tent banks" and "mobile banks" in Dujiangyang and Mianzhu to offer timely, convenient and much-needed financial services to their customers.

The earthquake in Sichuan struck a sympathetic chord among the 260,000 employees of the Bank of China, both in and out of China. More than 10,000 branches of the Bank of China, at home and abroad, began money and material donation activities of various forms, with a constantly rising amount of contributions. By June 30, 2008, the total value of the money and materials donated by the Bank of China Group and its employees to Sichuan was over 124 million yuan.

Aside from donating materials and money, the Bank of China also raised charity funds from society by using the advantage of its business outlets all over the world.

After the earthquake, The Bank of China opened the "Global Green Donation Passage" in more than 10,000 business networks across the globe, set up a dedicated donation counter, and gave priority to monetary donations and remittance business, waiving the administrative fee regardless of the sum.

Local branches even cooperated with local TV and radio stations, calling upon people to show their sympathies to those in disaster-stricken areas through the "Global Green Donation Passage". Some branches even organized the employees to donate blood.

Meanwhile, 700-odd overseas branches of the Bank of China became important channels for local Chinese, overseas Chinese, overseas employees of Chinese-funded institutions, and kind-hearted people of foreign countries to show their sympathetic feelings and donate to the disaster area. One after another, sum after sum of money was sent to Sichuan through the overseas branches of the Bank of China.

Increasing Credit Distribution to Support the Post-Disaster Reconstruction of Government and Enterprise

On May 22, 2008, the Bank of China held a special-topic conference on making immense efforts to support earthquake disaster areas to reconstruct the land.

To support the disaster-stricken area in post-disaster reconstruction, on the basis of enacting a series of rapid support measures such as "green passage" and increasing credit distribution, it launched nine financial measures to support financial services in the disaster areas, safeguarding both the interests of people and enterprise in the disaster areas and supporting the disaster areas so they may resume production and normal life as soon as possible.


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