OREANDA-NEWS. November 26, 2013. As renminbi gradually becomes a major currency for international settlement and investment, cross-border RMB business is also growing at a faster pace.

ICBC, for example, has seen its cross-border RMB business surge 26.7% year on year in the first three quarters this year to over 1.5 trillion yuan. Meanwhile, ICBC's RMB clearing network has covered about 70 countries/territories. Cross-border RMB services are now available at all ICBC overseas branches under the approval of local regulatory authorities.

In addition to growth in business volume, ICBC is consistently expanding global presence of cross-border RMB business, securing balanced, comprehensive development in related business at home and abroad. During the first three quarters this year, 50.3% of cross-border RMB transactions were settled by ICBC overseas institutions. In some ICBC overseas institutions, RMB business has contributed one-third or even 50% to their asset business, deposit or revenue, becoming a key element of core competitiveness.

On February 8, 2013, the People's Bank of China authorised ICBC Singapore Branch as the RMB clearing bank in Singapore. This is the first time the central bank has designated a Chinese RMB clearing bank in a foreign country. All RMB clearing services are running smoothly at Singapore RMB clearing bank since opening on May 27, marked by high growth in clearing volume. As of today, clearing volume at Singapore RMB clearing bank has reached over 1 trillion yuan. The strong momentum is supported by a clearing network spanning 31 countries/territories.

According to an ICBC official, ICBC is also expanding the RMB services to other countries/territories by leveraging its experience in building Singapore RMB clearing bank. From the year to date, ICBC has organised seminars and events in Luxembourg, Frankfurt, Paris, Milan, Jakarta and Kuala Lumper to promote RMB services overseas and set up offshore RMB service centre. Today, ICBC has a full spectrum of cross-border RMB products encompassing retail banking, fund clearing, trade finance, global cash management, special finance, investment banking, bank card, internet banking and asset management. Different product portfolios can be offered to different customers.

By leveraging the advantages as "the world's largest RMB bank" and "No.1 bank by assets", and supported by strong RMB capital position, ICBC may provide customers with abundant RMB source and competitive price, said industry insiders. ICBC is the first commercial bank in China to centralize the processing of domestic and overseas transactions. The real-time clearing system covering transfer, settlement, clearing and the centralized clearing in home and foreign currencies connect ICBC outlets across the globe, enabling real-time transfer of funds, as well as fast and efficient settlement services to customers.