ICBC constantly supporting growth in Laos

The Industrial and Commercial Bank of China is focusing on financing for various sectors in Laos.
, which is a developing country in Southeast Asia. 
On November 28, 2011, ICBC’s Vientiane branch was set up on November 28, 2011, acting as the first Chinese financial institution to support socio-economic development in Laos.
Branch manager Lu Jian gave an exclusive interview to Vientiane Times last week.“The bank gives great importance to supporting many sectors such as infrastructure, farming and tourism,” branch manager Lu Jian said in an exclusive interview with Vientiane Times last week. 
ICBC has seen many chances to grow in Laos, as the country requires a lot of funding to stimulate sustainable development.
Laos needs to develop infrastructure such as roads, railways, highways and power facilities to further drive economic growth and support the expansion of service sectors.
The bank would provide loans for development, including farming and the processing of goods for export, Lu said.
Laos is a farming country, but its products aren’t always competitive in the international market.
The tourism industry also has a lot of potential, but the development of supporting facilities such as road access is very slow. If this was improved, many more visitors could be expected to come, Lu said.
Social welfare is another sector that yearns for investment and improvement, such as the especially in healthcare and education.
, industries in Laos. However, there is not much funding for development in these areas and development is also slow. The bank wants to help the country improve on this front.
Over the past five years of operations in Laos, the total assets of ICBC’s Vientiane branch have exceeded 33.2 trillion kip, according to the bank’s statistics reported on June 30.
“Taken from another angle, the bank is a source of foreign direct investment but its purpose is to support development in Laos. We will do everything for the development of the country,” he said.
Laos is enjoying a boom in financial services. Policy in this area is wide open for banking investment. 
Regulations governing banking management open opportunities for foreign commercial banks to offer services there.
“If we compare the Lao experience with the expansion of the banking sector in China, regulations in other sectors need to be perfected in order to support greater growth in banking, as the banking sector can’t grow by itself,” Lu said.
Other business sectors also need effective management regulations so that the bank can supply loans.