UOB has strengthened its partnerships with leading Shandong companies to support their overseas expansion efforts into Southeast Asia with the signing of four agreements.

At the 25th Singapore-Shandong Business Council ( SSBC ) meeting held at Marina Bay Sands on October 9, UOB renewed its memorandum of understanding ( MOU ) with Hengfeng Bank, a leading commercial bank in Shandong province, to help more Chinese companies explore cross-border business opportunities in Southeast Asia.

In conjunction with the SSBC meeting, the Singaporean lender on October 10 also signed three new MOUs with Shandong-based businesses to support their internationalization efforts into Southeast Asia.

Shandong is one of China’s fastest growing provinces. In 2023, Shandong’s gross domestic product reached about 9.21 trillion yuan ( US$1.3 trillion ), making it the third-largest province in China, behind Guangdong and Jiangsu. Shandong was the first province in China to establish a bilateral business council with Singapore in 1993. In 2023, Singapore became the second-largest source of foreign direct investment flows for Shandong province and remains a key trade partner.

Under the renewed MOU, Hengfeng Bank and UOB reaffirmed their collaboration across a range of business areas including trade financing, investment banking, treasury and wealth management to support the local and cross-border needs of both parties’ customers.

The companies can access UOB’s full suite of financial solutions such as cross-border settlement, trade financing and cash management for their business expansion. Hengfeng Bank’s clients will also be able to leverage UOB’s dedicated foreign direct investment advisory unit and gain in-market insights and market-entry support for their overseas expansion efforts.

Building on the strategic partnership between UOB and Hengfeng Bank, UOB also signed three new MOUs with Shandong enterprises to support their expansion efforts into Southeast Asia. As at August 2024, Southeast Asia has become Shandong’s largest trading partner, with total bilateral trading volume of 45.71 billion yuan, a 10.3% growth year on year. These MOUs aim to boost foreign investment and trade between Shandong province and Southeast Asia.

UOB signed a first tripartite MOU with Hengfeng Bank and Shandong Port Group, a state-owned enterprise operating 20 major ports in Shandong province. It owns the world’s largest 400,000-tonne ore terminals and 450,000-tonne crude oil terminals, and is the largest foreign trade port in North China.

The Singaporean lender also signed another tripartite MOU with Hengfeng Bank and Shandong Marine Group, a large state-owned enterprise focused on the marine industry. A third MOU was inked with Shandong Yulong Petrochemical, an oil and natural gas refinement company.

Through these collaborations with UOB, the enterprises will be able to tap an ecosystem of strategic partners across the bank’s Southeast Asian network. They can also utilize UOB’s full suite of local and cross-border solutions, including trade financing, cash management and more.