New York State Banking Department to Give License to China Merchants Bank

MEDIA ADVISORY

NEW YORK, NY (07/11/2008)(readMedia)-- The New York State Banking Department is giving a license to China Merchants Bank to operate a branch office in New York. This is the first mainland Chinese branch licensed in the United States in 17 years.

Who: Superintendent of Banks for New York State, Richard H. Neiman

General Manager of China Merchants Bank, Hui Fang

Dave Fredsall, Deputy Superintendent of Foreign and Wholesale Banks

When: Monday, July 14, 2008

2 p.m. Remarks

Where: Banking Board Room

New York State Banking Dept.

One State Street Plaza

New York, NY 10004

Contact: Press availability immediately following remarks

Media RSVP to: glorimar.perez-gonzalez@banking.state.ny.us

More: The New York State Banking Department is the regulator for all state-chartered banking institutions, virtually all of the United States offices of international banking institutions, all of the State's mortgage brokers, mortgage bankers, check cashers, money transmitters and budget planners. The aggregate assets of the depository institutions supervised by the Banking Department are more than $1.9 trillion.

To contact the Banking Department, please call 1-877-BANK-NYS or visit our Web site at www.banking.state.ny.us.

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