(Yicai Global) Oct. 10 -- Industrial and Commercial Bank of China said it plans to invest CNY2 trillion (USD280.7 billion) in the Yangtze River Delta region over the next five years to support its integrated development, Xinmin Evening News reported.

The Beijing-based lender signed agreements today with six major state-owned firms to extend the region's railway network, make it digital and develop infrastructure, the report said. The firms are China State Railway Group, China Unicom, China Eastern Airlines, China COSCO Shipping, the Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China and China Shipbuilding Industry.

The delta region straddles Shanghai municipality and the provinces of Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Anhui. It is one of the most economically developed regions in China with a high degree of opening-up and a strong capacity for innovation. Last year it accounted for around one quarter of the country's gross domestic product.

ICBC, the world's biggest bank by assets, has also inked deals with the Shanghai Futures Exchange, China Financial Futures Exchange, Interbank Market Clearing House, China Trust Registration, Shanghai United Assets Exchange, Shanghai Insurance Exchange, Shanghai Stock Exchange and 14 leading firms in Shanghai, Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Anhui, Ningbo and Suzhou to turn the delta into a world-class manufacturing cluster.

ICBC provides a full range of financial services to 140 million individuals and 2.2 million corporate clients in the Yangtze River Delta region, the report cited President Gu Shu as saying.

Regional Lending

The lender has issued more than CNY3.3 trillion (USD463 billion) in loans, some CNY635.7 billion (USD89.4 billion) of which are to the region, and ranks first in the market, Gu added.

To date, the bank has over 3,000 branches in the delta area. These offer precious metals trading, private banking, commercial paper sales, banking transactions, remote banking and online financing services. They include three regional head offices and two business units, ICBC-AXA Life Insurance and ICBC Asset Management.

ICBC has also opened a science and financial service center for sci-tech innovation companies as well as six branches focusing on new markets in the region to help develop an innovative industrial system.

It will open a branch in Lingang New Area, the latest addition to the Shanghai Pilot Free Trade Zone, which will focus on financial innovation, cross-border businesses and financial transactions. This is in line with the government's aim for Lingang to trial freer trade, investment, finance and employment policies to meet the standards of the most competitive FTZs worldwide.

The new branch will focus on providing first-class financial services to companies, individuals, institutions and scientific innovators in the fields of innovation, infrastructure, environment protection, public services and a higher level of market opening.