Departments
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26 June 1998 |
Vol. II, No. 1 |
Feature Article
MET trains Chinese bankers as privatization takes hold
Twenty of China's top private banking and finance executives received an intensive lesson in American financial services at Metropolitan College earlier this month. The three organizations taking part in the two-week seminar -- the China Construction Bank, the China Investment Bank, and Zhongji Industrial, Ltd. -- are recognized as leaders in their country's change to a decentralized banking and investment system.
"Until recently, the Chinese banking system was tightly controlled by the government," says the seminar's organizer, MET Associate Professor of Administrative Sciences Kip Becker. "Now, to foster a competitive environment, the government is loosening controls, and bankers and investment managers must have a thorough understanding of the world's financial systems."
The China Construction Bank -- China's largest bank -- and the China Investment Bank sent their presidents, vice presidents, directors, general managers, and vice chairman to the seminar. The participants from Zhongji Industrial, Ltd. of Shanghai -- the country's largest private firm -- were key financial officers responsible for investments, loans, and banking liaisons, who wanted to become familiar with non-Chinese banking methods.
The bankers, taught by both BU professors and practicing financial professionals, studied currency risk management, strategy development, marketing, bank auditing, the federal reserve system, and back-office operations. They also visited some of Boston's top financial institutions, including State Street Investments, the Stock Exchange, and (pictured above) the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston.