The world's first commercial Confucius College held its signing ceremony recently in London.

China's renowned Tsinghua University will cooperate with the London School of Economics and Politics to jointly operate this tertiary institution.

HSBC initiated the foundation of this new kind of college. It will welcome medium and top-level administrative personnel from British business, and aims to teach them Chinese, as well as Chinese culture, economics and law.

The headquarters of the Confucius College is in Beijing. There are 54 Confucius Colleges located in 28 countries.

Confucius, or Kongfuzi, was a famous Chinese thinker, educator and philosopher, whose theories have had a significant influence worldwide.

(CRIEnglish.com April 10, 2006)