China's No. 2 lender, is looking for acquisition opportunities in Europe but first needs to see regulators open their doors, its chairman told the Financial Times.
CCB Chairman Wang Hongzhang told the FT in an interview published on the paper's website on Sunday that "CCB values the European market a lot."
"If we can find suitable targets and the price is suitable and we get the regulators' support, I think CCB will catch and seize the chance for mergers and acquisitions."
Wang said no deal was imminent but he had met regulators in Germany and the UK last week for informal talks about whether the bank would be welcome in the two countries.
He said he wanted to expand operations to more European countries but added: "Whether we can establish more institutions in Europe depends on European countries' regulators, their attitudes towards CCB and whether CCB is welcomed by them or not.
Sources: Reuters
