Handelsbanken joins the Chinese clearing system

Handelsbanken has been granted membership of CNAPS - China National Advanced Payment System.

"This means we can offer our customers quicker, simpler payment services in the Chinese currency than any other Nordic bank," says Johan Andrén, manager of Handelsbanken in Shanghai.

Foreign banks with operations in China that are not members of CNAPS must instead have a co-operation agreement with a Chinese bank to be able to clear all their payments via that bank's payment system. This means that payments take longer and if there are errors, the investigation and tracking process is often very time-consuming and complicated.

"In our case, our customers' payments are now always within our own system. This system is now linked directly to the Chinese central bank clearing system, making transactions in China as quick and as secure as they possibly can be," says Johan Andrén. 

Michael Zell, head Handelsbanken Greater China, also points to the rapid progress that is being made to increase the use of the Chinese currency the renminbi (RMB) in China's trade with the rest of the world.

"Therefore we are now moving on with the work of establishing ourselves as a settlement bank in the new programme for cross-border payments in RMB," says Michael Zell.

Handelsbanken opened its first office in China in 1982. It is now the Nordic bank with the largest presence in the region, with branches in Shanghai and Hong Kong as well as representative offices in Beijing and Taipei.


For further information, please contact:
Michael Zell, head Handelsbanken Greater China, +852 690 07 712
Johan Andrén, manager, Handelsbanken Shanghai + 861 38 184 886 22