(Yicai Global) July 20 -- Standard Chartered plans to add more than 1,600 staff at a new banking center in southern China’s Greater Bay Area by the end of 2023, aiming to take advantage of the location and policy support to develop its cross-border business, according to the Shanghai Securities Journal.

Standard Chartered will set up its Greater Bay Area Centre in Guangzhou at a cost of USD40 million, the report said today, citing the British bank. Due to open this quarter, the center will support personal and corporate banking operations in the area and promote the development and use of innovative financial technologies. 

The Greater Bay Area comprises the two special administration regions of Hong Kong and Macao and nine mainland cities, including Guangzhou and Shenzhen, and enjoys a high degree of economic openness. In May, China’s government issued a policy paper backing the area’s development, supporting financial firms to carry out lending, wealth management and investments across borders along with other business in the region.

That offers a huge opportunity for financial institutions, said Jerry Zhang, chief executive officer of Standard Chartered Bank China.

The London-based lender will innovate in the fields of account opening, payment and settlement, financing, investment, insurance and wealth management, risk aversion and information exchange to promote easy flow and optimal allocation of various elements in the area, she said.

The connection between cities in Guangdong province, Hong Kong, Macao and cities around the world over the flow of people, logistics and capital will continue to strengthen, according to Benjamin Hung, the bank’s chief executive for China and North Asia. That will lead to the formation of a regional international financial hub and financial ecosystem, he said.

Editor: Peter Thomas