Macau Property Market Still Intact following Suspension of “Investment Residency Policy”

The ‘Venetian effect,’ has helped Macau’s property market remain unaffected by the suspension of the “Investment Residency Policy.” Insiders believe that Macau’s property market has a bright future with a golden age coming in the next five years. The inauguration of the Venetian Macau heralded the opening of the Cotai Strip™ and brought increased business to the local high-end property market, heating up transactions. Stimulated by various positive factors, the property market has seen buoyant buying and looks set for a boom. The number of people surveying properties rose by 30-40% compared to that of the same period last year. High-quality properties priced between MOP2.5 and MOP3.5 million are highly sought after. Taipa, a new residential area, has long been regarded as the most promising area for development and property transactions there are buoyant.

ICBC’s Seng Heng Bank Acquisition: A Win-Win Strategic Merger

The Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) bought a 79.9333% stake in Seng Heng Bank (SHB), at a price of $4.683 billion in a transaction ceremony held at MGM Grand Macau at 10:30am on 28 January 2008. 

Jiang Jianqing, Chairman of the Board of Directors of ICBC, said that the SHB purchase constituted an important strategic move by ICBC, not only to consolidate its position as the leader in the Hong Kong-Macau-Zhuhai region, but also to expand into Asia on the international financial market as well. ICBC will make full use of its huge business network, client base, capital reserve and sci-tech capabilities to enhance all of the banking operations of SHB. Zhu Xiaoping, Chairman and Executive Director of SHB, said that with the advanced IT systems and leading position in Pearl River Delta Region that ICBC enjoys, SHB will be able to serve as a ‘window’ between the internal and external markets. 

During the early stages of the merger, ICBC made a comprehensive plan for its integration with SHB. In view of the fact that all of ICBC’s previous mergers and moves have yielded positive returns, there is good reason to believe that this merger will be a win-win situation.