中信銀行決策層考慮放棄美國分行
Citic, the large Chinese investment conglomerate, is considering giving up its bank branches in the US at the same time as it undergoes a large restructuring, according to several senior Citic executives.
據中國大型投資集團中信(Citic)多名高管透露，中信正考慮在實施大規模重組的同時，捨棄其在美國的銀行分行。The main change involves injecting $37bn of assets from China into Citic’s Hong Kong listed unit, Citic Pacific.
主要的變化涉及中信在香港上市的子公司中信泰富(Citic Pacific)接受母公司370億美元的資產注入。But Citic is also looking at revamping its US presence because it is among a group of Chinese entities, along with China Investment Corp, that US regulators consider bank holding companies.
但中信還在考慮重組美國業務，因爲它和中投公司(China Investment Corp)等多家中國公司一樣，被美國監管機構視爲持有銀行的公司。
Under the Volcker rule, companies that control retail banks in the US will be subject to stringent requirements on what they can do once the rule is brought in next summer.
根據“沃爾克規則”(Volcker rule)，到明年夏天，在美國控股零售銀行的公司，在行爲方面將受到嚴格限制。Among other things, banks face restrictions on investing directly with their own money and engaging in proprietary trading.
除了其它約束外，銀行用自有資金直接投資和從事自營交易將面臨限制。To avoid those limits, Citic is considering closing its two branches in the US. They are in Los Angeles and New York, with total assets of under $500m as of last September, according to Federal Reserve data.
爲避免上述限制，中信正考慮關閉在美國的兩家分行。根據美聯儲(Fed)數據，這兩家分行分別位於洛杉磯和紐約，截至去年9月的總資產不到5億美元。Citic is not the only foreign bank concerned about the Volcker rule, and tough US stances on money-laundering, financial sanctions and tax evasion for companies that operate as banks within the US.
對於沃爾克規則，以及美國在洗錢、金融制裁和逃稅問題上對以銀行身份在美國經營的公司的強硬態度，中信不是唯一感到擔憂的外資銀行。If others follow Citic and re-evaluate their US presence, it could affect the competitiveness of US fin-ancial markets and the dollar’s status as a reserve currency, some analysts say.
一些分析師表示，如果其他銀行效仿中信，重新評估它們在美國的存在，那就可能影響美國金融市場的競爭力和美元的儲備貨幣地位。“Bank holding company rules are having a meaningful impact on the way foreign institutions think about having US subsidiaries, and in some cases are reconsidering and reducing their presence,” says Joo-Yung Lee, a managing director at Fitch and head of North American Financial Institutions coverage.
惠譽(Fitch)董事總經理兼北美金融機構業務主管Joo-Yung Lee表示：“針對持有銀行的公司的規定，對外資金融機構如何看待擁有美國子公司有重大影響，某些外資金融機構在重新考慮要不要在美國開展業務，或考慮縮減在美業務。”CIC, the Chinese sovereign wealth fund, has a good chance of getting a waiver from the Volcker restrictions, lawyers say, since it is simply part of central Huijin, the holding company for Chinese government stakes in the state-owned banks.
律師們表示，作爲中國的主權財富基金，中投公司很有可能得到豁免，不必受沃爾克規則的限制，因爲中投公司只不過是中央匯金(Central Huijin)的一部分，後者代表中國政府持股國有銀行。But if it does not, it may be forced to unload the US hedge funds in which it invests.
但如果中投公司未能得到豁免，它或許將被迫撤出以前投資的一些美國對衝基金。After the $37bn restructuring, Citic Pacific will hold a variety of the financial units that come from its parent, including Citic Securities, which is listed in Shanghai, and Citic Bank, with over $600bn in assets as of the end of last year.
經過價值370億美元的重組，中信泰富將持有來自母公司的一系列金融業務，包括在上海上市的中信證券(Citic Securities)，以及資產規模截至去年底超過6000億美元的中信銀行(Citic Bank)。Meanwhile, Citic Capital, another arm of the company, is trying to change its shareholding structure to reduce the presence of Citic and CIC to avoid being considered part of a bank holding company and thus subject to constraints on raising money from US investors, the executives said.
與此同時，高管們表示，中信旗下另一家子公司中信資本(Citic Capital)正試圖變更持股結構，減少中信和中投的持股比例，以免被視爲屬於一家持有銀行的公司，以至於在美籌資面臨限制。“I don’t know why everyone doesn’t give up their bank licenses,” says one prominent New York-based lawyer who specialises in banking issues.
專注於銀行業事務的紐約一位知名律師表示：“我不明白大家爲什麼不乾脆放棄自己的銀行牌照。”“The Volcker rule is a gigantic added burden. We are telling all our clients that we can’t understand how they justify branches here now.”
“沃爾克規則是個巨大的額外負擔。我們在對所有客戶說，我們不理解他們爲何還在這裏維持分行。”
