OREANDA-NEWS. July 05, 2013. Approved by the State Council, the People’s Bank of China signed a bilateral local currency swap agreement with the Bank of England for the purpose of facilitating bilateral economic ties and trade, and maintaining financial stability.

The size of the swap facility is 200 billion yuan or 20 billion pound. The agreement is valid for three years and can be extended by mutual consent.

In recent years, the RMB business has grown on the London market. The establishment of a bilateral local currency swap arrangement between the PBC and the Bank of England will provide liquidity support for the development of the London RMB market, promote the use of RMB in overseas markets, and facilitate bilateral trade and investment.

The signing of the bilateral local currency swap agreement marks the new progress in the monetary and financial cooperation between the PBC and the Bank of England.