By Kim Soyoung
SHANGHAI (Reuters) - Woori Bank, South Korea's No.3 lender, expects to receive final approval this month to set up a wholly owned unit in China by December and is looking to buy Chinese lenders to speed its move into the world's fourth-largest economy.
The banking unit of Woori Financial Group (053000.KS: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) won a preliminary nod from the China Banking Regulatory Commission in June to locally incorporate its operations in China -- a first for a South Korean lender.
Woori plans to incorporate locally with initial capital of $300 million by the end of December and aims to have 53 branches and a workforce of 900 by 2010, Hwang Rok, Woori Bank's head of global operations, told the Reuters China Century Summit.
"China's banking regulator approved our preparatory work for launching the unit on August 30, so we expect final approval this month," Hwang told the Reuters Summit in a phone interview from Seoul.
"Although competition is getting tougher, we are confident we can crack a niche market in China by targeting major South Korean corporate clients, a big number of Korean Chinese, as well as wealthy Chinese customers."
Woori and two other South Korean lenders are among a dozen foreign banks queuing to incorporate their operations in China, whose banking market was opened to overseas banks in late 2006 as part of Beijing's commitment to the World Trade Organisation.
Setting up China-incorporated subsidiaries enables foreigners to offer full-fledged banking services to Chinese customers and makes it easier for foreign banks to apply to open new branches, since Beijing gives priority to foreign banks with local incorporation.
"To speed up our expansion, we are looking for potential takeover targets among Chinese banks, although no negotiations are under way yet," Hwang said. Continued...
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