Industrial and Commercial Bank of China has officially launched its Asia Pacific business with an aim to seize the tremendous opportunities offered by favourable national policies including ‘Belt and Road’ initiative, the internationalisation of the Renminbi and the ‘Going-Global’ of Chinese enterprises called for by the government. The Asia Pacific business covers more than 20 countries and regions, including United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Myanmar, Australia, Indonesia, Japan, Pakistan, Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, and the Far East areas of Russia. To foster closer collaboration, ICBC (Asia) — the flagship of overseas banking business of ICBC — signed strategic cooperative agreements with the State Development and Investment Corporation (SDIC), China XD Group Corporation, China Reform Holdings Corporation, and PowerChina International Group. ICBC chairman Jiang Jianqing said ICBC will continue to maintain its strategic pillar in Hong Kong, with the strong support from ICBC (Asia), to integrate the resources in the Asia Pacific Region, optimise regional cooperation, and ultimately sustain and enhance its operational strengths across the Asia Pacific region.