Industrial and Commercial Bank of China is in the process of applying for a branch license in New Zealand. Two other Chinese banks, Bank of China and China Construction Bank, have already applied for bank branch licenses in the country. The bank has already registered a subsidiary in New Zealand in November 2013. A bank spokesperson said with the dual license, the bank expects to be restricted less and it can support more local infrastructure projects. New Zealand regulations stipulate that locally incorporated subsidiaries are separate legal entities from the parent bank. They are required, among other things, to maintain minimum capital requirements in New Zealand and have their own board of directors, including independent directors.
