And CCB also wins Top 10 Growth Bank in Asia for 2006 and Best Investor Relations.

Winners of 2006 Asian Bank Competitive Rankings which is the first ranking jointly organized by China’s press and academic institutions was announced in Beijing recently, and 18 financial institutions from China, Hong Kong and Taiwan, entered into Top 50. China Construction Bank Corporation (CCB) was ranked No.4 in Asia, and No. 1 among China’s domestic banks; and granted the award for the Most Competitive Commercial bank among China’s Domestic Banks. In addition, CCB was also awarded Top 10 Growth Bank in Asia for 2006 and Best Investor Relations.
　

Since the IPO, CCB has, based on its strategic envision of becoming a world-class bank by providing best service to customers, maximizing shareholders value and offering best development opportunities for employees, strengthened its reform, improved its system, accelerated its innovation, enhanced its management, adjusted its structure, and expanded its cooperation. This award shows that CCB has scored lots of achievements in corporate governance, operation and management, risk management, business development, and investor relations.

Reportedly, the 2006 Asian Bank Competitive Rankings was co-organized by 21st Century Business Herald, the Department of Finance of The Chinese University of Hong Kong and the Guanghua School of Management of Beijing University. The Rating Committee believes that following its restructuring and successful IPO, CCB has made marked improvements in corporate governance, business process and service quality which are in line with international best practices, and gained a further improvement in its core competitiveness.

With honoring the entire promises of accessing WTO, China’s banks are undergoing tremendous changes, also in terms of operation environment. As for China’s banks, it means both big challenges and great opportunities. And in this process, the core competitiveness is major part of that. One of CCB’s officials said, China’s banks should see the distance between them and world-class banks on the one hand; and on the other, should aware their own strength and advantages. If China’s banks properly treat the changes in environments both domestic and abroad, take more efforts in innovation and reform, try their best to improve their core competitiveness, draw upon their strength, learn lessons and experience from foreign banks, China’s banks are able to compete with foreign banks on the same stage and make themselves world-class commercial banks

It is the first time for China’s press and academic institutions to jointly organize such an activity of Asian Bank Competitive Rankings which is rated on banks comprehensive competitiveness. This ranking is manly based on banks’ financial data and their annual reports that have been released. Meanwhile, it rates top 100 banks in Asia of that year by conducting comprehensive investigations and questionnaire, then analyzing the results and finally sending the criteria on competitiveness to the financial circle and the society.

CCB’s Profile:

China Construction Bank Corporation (CCB, Stock Code:939) was successfully listed on the main board of the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited on 27 October 2005, the first public listing of China’s four largest state-owned commercial banks in the overseas market. CCB provides a comprehensive range of commercial banking products and services, and its principal business activities consist of corporate banking, personal banking and treasury operations. CCB is among the market leaders in China in a number of products and services: the second largest lender of infrastructure loans; one of major lenders in terms of residential mortgage products; and the second largest issuer of bank cards. CCB has an extensive customer base, with the network of 14 thousand branch outlets throughout the whole country. Customers can access CCB’s services through various channels such as wealth management centers, electronic banking, and self-service banking centers. CCB has always been the leader in terms of comprehensive competitiveness, marketing and promotion, risk management and control and profitability compared with other Chinese banks. On August 24, CCB and Bank of America Corporation signed the agreement that announced the 100%-equity acquisition of Bank of America (Asia), the wholly owned subsidiary of Bank of America in Hong Kong. CCB was named by The Banker magazine as the “Bank of the Year” in China in 2005. According to The Banker magazine, CCB was rated 11th among Top 1000 World Banks and ranked the No. 1 on the list of top 100 China’s bank. According to the Hong Kong-based financial journal, Asiaweek, CCB was rated 7th among Top 300 Asian Banks released, and rewarded as the highest net interest income and net profit, and the “most profitable bank in Asia”.  And CCB also was named by FinanceAsia of Hong Kong as Best Managed Company, Best Commitment to Strong Dividends and Best Corporate Governance.