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Fed OKs ICBC's takeover of Bank of East Asia

China.org.cn, May 10, 2012

• The U.S. Federal Reserve Wednesday approved the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), the largest bank of the country, to purchase a majority stake in the American arm of the Bank of East Asia.

  

  ICBC and two other Chinese investing firms , China Investment Corporation and Central Huijin Investment Ltd., have been cleared way to together buy an 80-percent stake in New York-based Bank of East Asia U.S.A.. The three Chinese institutions will all become bank holding companies.

  The Bank of East Asia U.S.A. has total assets of approximately 780 million U.S. dollars and operates 13 branches in New York and California.

  The Fed also approved an application of the Bank of China, the third largest bank in China, to establish a branch in Chicago and an application by the Agricultural Bank of China, the fourth largest bank in China, to set up a branch in New York City.

  The approval comes after the conclusion of the fourth round of China-U.S. Strategic and Economic Dialogue last week.

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