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The BMCE Bank of Africa Group inaugurated Tuesday a branch in Shanghai, symbol of a Sino-African alliance for the co-development of Africa.
Present in China since 2000 through its representative office, BMCE Bank of Africa is one of the first African banks to obtain approval for the opening of a branch in Shanghai, said a statement from the banking group.
The official opening ceremony of the branch office in the Shanghai Tower, a skyscraper in Pudong’s financial district, was marked by the presence of President Othman Benjelloun and official figures, prominent representatives of the financial sector as well as actors Chinese economic reference.
During this ceremony, the President of the BMCE Bank of Africa group, Mr Othman Benjelloun, reminded his guests of the importance of 2019 for his financial group since it is both the sixtieth anniversary of the creation of the bank and the launch of banking activities in the People’s Republic of China, through BMCE Bank International Shanghai.
“After nearly two decades of presence in Beijing, in the form of a representative office, we have the privilege of counting ourselves, from now on, among the Shanghai financial community, as a Chinese bank, of Moroccan origin and African vocation,” said Mr. Benjelloun.
He also stated the reasons for his group’s interest in China for nearly five decades, noting that by “betting on China for several decades and exercising today in Shanghai, we wanted to illustrate the real role that financiers and bankers must play, that of working to build confidence among economic agents, I would even say, to help establish or reinforce it between states”.
Indeed, since its official start in January 2019, the BMCE Bank Of Africa branch in Shanghai has become a natural interlocutor of Chinese economic operators, whether public or private, wishing to invest the African market. It is also a very sought-after interface by the Moroccan part when it comes to getting to know the Asian market better, to approach prospects or potential Chinese partners.
His contributions are now recognized and recognized in the preparation of business missions between the two countries and in the economic promotion and investment for the benefit of Morocco.
To this end, the group makes available to its branch in Shanghai, its entire international network, more than 1650 agencies around the world to provide all its business expertise and support investors in both Africa and China.
Thanks to its presence in Shanghai, the BMCE Bank of Africa group aims to become one of the major compensators for the Renminbi (RMB) currency in Africa and, after agreement with the Chinese authority, the statement said.
Thus, the BMCE Bank International Shanghai branch will be the starting point to support foreign currency and RMB financing.
In parallel, BMCE Bank International Shanghai will strongly support Chinese institutions, which wish to invest in Africa through deals offered by all subsidiaries working for Africa or by participating directly in financing. A project previously started and will grow thanks to the presence of the group in China.
The branch is a platform to become a reference bank in trade with Africa through its wide network on the African continent.
Already committed to several projects strengthening economic relations between Morocco, Africa, China and the rest of the world, the BMCE Bank of Africa group has been committed, for several years, to a policy of diversification of network of correspondents by sealing major partnerships aimed at setting up SME Financing Funds and encouraging cooperation between Morocco and China, notably with the China Development Bank Corporation (CDBC), one of the leading banks on the Chinese square, recalls the statement.
He also organized the 1st edition of B to B meetings on the subject of China Africa Investment Meetings (CAIM) with more than 250 investors and business leaders from Morocco, China and Sub-Saharan Africa, who have come together to exchange and seal partnerships in various sectors of common interest such as automotive, agriculture, renewable energy, tourism, logistics and infrastructure.
To further strengthen its position in China, BMCE Bank Of Africa has also actively participated in the China-Morocco Economic Forum, where several Memorandums of Understanding have been sealed with Chinese industrial and financial operators.
All these joints that allow the BMCE Bank of Africa Group to position itself as a reference economic actor for the development of Sino-African relations, concludes the same source.
