According to the “Pakistan Investment Forum” held on April 2, ICBC is cooperating with Habib Bank, the largest commercial bank in Pakistan in forms of financial advisory, multilayer investment and financing product support to leverage their function as a “credit intermediary” and “information intermediary” to support China-Pakistan economic cooperation, especially for Chinese enterprises investing in Pakistan.

With implementation of the “One Belt and One Road” strategy and construction of the “China-Pakistan Economic Corridor”, both countries have come to a historical development opportunity in economic and trade cooperation .However, for many Chinese enterprises, as Pakistan is still a relatively unfamiliar market, they often face difficulties such as capital shortage, insufficient information and experience in the initial stage of investment. The forum was co-sponsored by the biggest commercial banks of the two countries, ICBC and Habib Bank, with the theme of “Investing in Pakistan -- mutual benefit and common prosperity, win-win cooperation”. It was aimed at systematically introducing investment opportunities in Pakistan to Chinese enterprises, presenting investment demands of Chinese enterprises and successful experience of Chinese industrial zone development to the Pakistani government and enterprises, enhancing mutual understanding among enterprises of the two countries, and laying a good foundation for Chinese enterprises' investment in Pakistan and cooperation with Pakistani enterprises over the next step.

ICBC is currently the only Chinese-funded bank with a branch in Pakistan, and also a Chinese financial institution with the most extensive global network. Habib Bank is the largest commercial bank in Pakistan. At the end of 2013, ICBC and Habib Bank jointly initiated a project of “China-Pakistan industrial zone” in an effort to leverage their strengths in financial service, business network, customer resources, and project information to assist Chinese enterprises in investing in Pakistan, conducting industrial cooperation and building industrial zones, and promote China’s advantageous industries to enter the Pakistani market. Since 2014, the two banks have actively adopted methods including financial consulting, M&A loans, project loans, export credit, and financing leasing to offer financing and information support for key projects of the “China-Pakistan Economic Corridor” and Chinese enterprises’ investment in Pakistan. The joint endeavors have bore fruitful results.