Citi unveils automated RMB cross-border pooling in Shanghai FTZ

The first of its kind in FTZ.

According to a release, Citi has launched an automated RMB cross-border pooling solution, utilizing the financial policy in the Shanghai Pilot Free Trade Zone (SFTZ). The structure was pioneered for Roche, a leading European pharmaceutical company, and is a significant milestone in the ongoing financial development in the SFTZ.

By leveraging Citi’s global platform, multinational companies and large corporations will be able to automatically sweep RMB between their onshore and offshore entities freely, without needing to provide supporting documents or applying for approvals on a deal basis.

Yigen Pei, China Country head for Treasury and Trade Solutions, said “Citi will offer true automated two-way cross-border sweeping in the SFTZ. Our partnership with Roche on RMB cross-border pooling is an example of how we support the world’s top companies by leveraging Citi’s scale, product capabilities and game-changing innovations.”

Andrew Au, Chief Executive Officer of Citi China said, “We are delighted to offer this sophisticated liquidity solution to our corporate clients, the first of its kind in the Free Trade Zone.

This landmark step reinforces our leadership in treasury and liquidity management, and demonstrates our unwavering commitment to supporting our clients and to promoting the internationalization of RMB.”

Citi has been closely engaged in the ongoing process of regulatory reform in China, which has inspired a variety of pioneering solutions that are already benefitting clients across its franchise.

Amol Gupte, Region Head, Treasury and Trade Solutions, Asia Pacific said, “We are now looking at the next stage – what more we can do? Our RMB capabilities are a case in point as we are using state-of-the-art global concentration platforms to address clients’ local and cross-border RMB needs, enabling them to capitalize on opportunities that evolving regulatory reforms bring.”

Stephan Bohner, Head of Financing & Markets at Roche said: “We are glad to be part of this milestone solution, which we believe will significantly increase our global treasury management efficiency. Roche’s partnership with Citi goes back a long way and we have chosen Citi to support our RMB cross-border settlement transactions since 2010. We believe this new structure will take our liquidity management to a higher level.”