Bank of China played an important role in the past three sessions of the China International Import Expo, assisting in the hosting of a range of events and providing advanced financial services.

As the only comprehensive banking service supporting enterprise at the first CIIE in 2018 and the only strategic partner at the second and third CIIE sessions, BOC actively participated in the expo's preparation and made great efforts to provide high-quality services for the event based on its longtime experience serving international trade businesses.

Since some companies have been unable to attend the expo on-site, BOC has helped the CIIE organizer to hold online supply-demand matchmaking conferences and aided global companies in seeking opportunities.

As the CIIE's only strategic partner, BOC has committed itself to the in-depth preparation and organization of the previous sessions of the event three years in a row, providing policy consultancy, financing and payment, and business matchmaking services for more than 10,000 enterprises from over 80 countries and regions.

As of the end of October last year, BOC hosted had 68 cross-border matchmaking conferences, attracting 40,000 companies from 125 countries.

They covered information technology, biomedicine, high-end manufacturing, artificial intelligence, modern agriculture, new energy, environmental protection, education, medical care and tourism.

The bank hosted 22 roadshows for the second CIIE and 21 roadshows for the third CIIE both domestically and abroad.

The first domestic investment promotion roadshow for the third CIIE began in Chengdu in June 2020 and traveled to Changsha in Hunan province, Shangrao in Jiangxi province, Ningbo and Hangzhou in Zhejiang province, Nanjing in Jiangsu province, Changchun in Jilin province, Yinchuan in the Ningxia Hui autonomous region, Xining in Qinghai province, Jinan in Shandong province, and Kunming in Yunnan province, as well as in Shanghai, Chongqing, Tianjin and ending in Beijing in September 2020.

Before that, BOC's New York branch supported a promotional conference for the third CIIE in the city in November 2019.

Through the end of 2019, it had participated in several promotional events for the third CIIE in Australia, New Zealand, Fiji, Cuba and Costa Rica.

BOC branches in Paris, Panama and Buenos Aires have also provided on-site services for local promotion activities.

BOC has offered payment services for CIIE participants by integrating mainstream payment tools at home and abroad, including Alipay, WeChat, UnionPay, credit cards and QR code payments.

At the third CIIE, the bank set up a 5G experience area, featuring holographic technology, interactive experiences and multimedia applications.

At the second import expo, BOC provided more than 40 ATMs, currency exchange machines, and intelligent machines and tools to serve domestic and foreign exhibitors, bringing convenient and efficient financial services to the expo.

To guarantee on-site payment for sales related to intangible cultural heritage projects at the third CIIE, BOC established a linkage guarantee team, covering every link from point-of-sale equipment to acquisition systems, and provided "one-to-one" services for each exhibitor.

BOC played an essential role in serving the event and hosted many important forums and activities.

One forum co-hosted by BOC and the People's Bank of China at the third CIIE discussed the creation of inclusive financial systems and digital development.

The event focused on the application of innovative technologies, narrowing the gap for infrastructure and managing financial risks.

During the second CIIE, BOC supported the global e-commerce summit forum and a forum on promoting the internationalization of renminbi to serve China's free trade zones, delivering positive signals of the Chinese government in supporting the development of a multilateral trading system, the facilitation of free trade and openness of the global economy.

Bank of China has been serving the CIIE as its strategic partner with premium financial services and products. CHINA DAILY