JPMorgan Chase is weighing the option of opening a private bank in China, after the country released new rules to open its financial sector to foreign investors, reported Bloomberg.
Under the new rules, foreign investors are allowed to take a controlling stake in joint-venture (JV) securities firms in China.
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The decision is said to significantly boost competition in the country, where personal wealth increased to $24 trillion in 2018 as per estimates by the Boston Consulting Group.
JPMorgan is currently conducting a feasibility study on China’s onshore wealth business, its Asia private banking CEO Kam Shing Kwang was quoted as saying by the report.
The move forms part of the lender’s broader expansion strategy in the country.
Though currently at an early stage, the China venture would start “not in the distant future”, Kwang noted.
In September, JPMorgan CEO for China business Mark Leung unveiled plans to hire in China.
The hiring will cover the areas of banking, asset management, custodian services and markets, Leung said.
Currently, the bank is in the process of securing consent for a majority-owned securities joint venture in China, the report stated.
Meanwhile, CEO Jamie Dimon has pledged to bring the bank’s full force in the country.
Last December, UBS announced plans to increase its stake in its securities JV in China from 24.99% to 51%.
Through the move, UBS became the first foreign bank to pick a majority stake in a China business.
