Lihong Zhou, Bank of China Luxembourg, looks back on forty years of the company and her vision for the future.

​

​

How do you feel as you reflect on the 40th anniversary of Bank of China Luxembourg?

 

It’s a very proud moment for us, celebrating 40 years of prosperity, success and growth. Some four decades ago, several visits between both states’ government forged a strong Sino-Luxembourg relationship. This resulted in the Bank of China becoming the first Chinese bank to establish a branch outside China after the founding of the People’s Republic of China, at a time when Luxembourg was developing its financial centre and when China was experiencing a period of reform and more open policies. Throughout these four decades in Luxembourg, Bank of China Luxembourg has been deeply rooted and integrated locally. Today, Bank of China Luxembourg is the European regional hub of a publicly-listed G-SIB, expanding our footprints across Europe, and also acts as a bridge, serving Chinese and European clients who are “going global” in their overseas investments. In addition, we currently have a total of 23 different nationalities among the employees in our Luxembourg office alone, all with multicultural backgrounds and yet all focused and working towards achieving the same vision of success.

 

​

“Throughout four decades in Luxembourg, Bank of China Luxembourg has been deeply rooted and integrated locally.”

​

​

Which clients do you serve from Luxembourg and how are their needs evolving?

 

Bank of China Luxembourg's business activities have changed substantially from its traditional model in commercial banking - mainly consisting of deposits, loans and remittances - to a model with a more comprehensive range of products and services in corporate banking, personal banking, financial markets, asset management and custody services. We tailor our services to meet the needs of a wide range of personal and corporate banking clients, financial institutions, small and medium-sized enterprises, clients in trade finance and more. In the past few years, we have also seen increased demand for green finance which has experienced incredible growth. As such, our Bank would like to support more green financing and sustainable development projects. Lastly, Bank of China aims to promote the local economy and looks to create synergies, combining business opportunities between China and Europe.

 

How do you envision the future for Bank of China, both in Europe and around the world?

 

We envision continued success for Bank of China, along with new breakthroughs. As we look to develop our business across Europe and other regions outside Europe, our Bank’s primary aims remain the same: providing more in-depth, value-added and comprehensive services for our clients, committing to our social responsibilities, continually maintaining a steady pace of business development and supporting the real economy. While we continue to serve our clients with diligence, commitment and loyalty, we also envision further supporting green financing and sustainable development projects and further strengthening our transaction banking business.