People familiar with the matter revealed that Citi Bank's time to promote the establishment of a wholly -owned securities business in China is longer than the plan, because the bank needs more time to comply with the requirements of the Chinese data law.
Bloomberg Society on Monday (December 18) quoted people familiar with the matter that Citi Bank was seeking to start China's securities business as early as the end of next year.One of the people familiar with the matter said that although there is no timetable, Citi has previously estimated that the relevant licenses will be in place in 2023.
Citi submitted a preliminary application for the establishment of a brokerage and futures trading business in 2021. In the same year, China announced the data security law, requiring enterprises to build new infrastructure before obtaining licenses.
Citi has recruited chief executives, chief financial officers and chief compliance officers for the securities business.However, one of the people familiar with the matter said that because the completion time of the technical system is not yet certain, some recruitment has been put on hold.
Citi needs to establish a team of more than 30 people and independent infrastructure before applying for on -site inspections and approval to start the securities business.
China has implemented the data security law from September 2021. It requires enterprises to handle key data to conduct risk assessment and submit reports, and have implemented more restrictions on the flow of data flow in China.To this end, many banks and asset management companies have established domestic centers to save their Chinese data in China, increasing costs and management barriers.
Citi issued a statement in October this year stating that it has agreed to sell the personal bank wealth management business in China to HSBC. The business includes accounts, deposits and related wealth management products held by individual customers.
