Standard Chartered Issues Industry's First RMB Bid Bond
Standard Chartered Bank has issued the industry’s first renminbi (RMB) bid bond, amounting to RMB800,000, for a service project in China, guaranteeing service delivery by a client in Malaysia. This transaction, which closed on 18 August, is Standard Chartered’s first RMB service guarantee in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) region. Standard Chartered Malaysia has also successfully opened RMB Accounts and settled RMB transactions for corporate clients since January this year.
The RMB bid bond brings a number of benefits to corporates within China and ASEAN. In this instance, the Chinese corporate can pay its service provider in Malaysia in RMB, avoiding FX and interest risk. This cuts down transaction costs, improves efficiency and offers transparent pricing. For the Malaysian service provider, invoicing in RMB means an increase in the transparency of pricing. On a longer-term basis, this opens up a larger client/buyer base in China, a rapidly growing market.
Yong Lee Boon, head of transaction banking, Standard Chartered Bank Malaysia, said: “Standard Chartered has been involved in the pilot RMB Trade Settlement initiative, run by the People’s Bank of China, since the conception of the scheme. We have continued to partner and consult with PBoC to build an efficient market for RMB trade settlement. This RMB bid bond issuance demonstrates clearly our expertise in this area and our commitment to this initiative by the Chinese government.”