Industrial and Commercial Bank of China has agreed to acquire a majority stake in the Bank of East Asia''s US unit, making it the first Chinese lender to buy into a US retail bank, The Wall Street Journal reported on its website on Friday. ICBC and Bank of East Asia were mentioned in a preliminary list of companies expected to participate in a contract signing ceremony at the US-China Trade and Economic Co-operation Forum on the last day of Chinese President Hu Jintao''s visit to the United States.
The US head of Bank of East Asia was not available to comment on the report. A bid by China''s largest lender would be scrutinised by US regulators and could trigger political controversy, given the history of unsuccessful attempts by Chinese companies to acquire all or part of US companies. If approved, it could pave the way for other Chinese banks to buy into the US market and inject capital to the banking industry.
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