Wing Hang Bank announced Monday to have formally completed its takeover of rival Hang Kong lender Chekiang First Bank.

The merged bank, which will retain the name as Wing Hang Bank Limited, will be Hong Kong's seventh largest listed bank, with total assets of over 85 billion HK dollars (10.9 billion US dollars).

The deal, worth 4.8 billion US dollars (600 million US dollars)doubled Wing Hang's assets overnight. After the acquisition, the bank will operate over 50 branches and representative offices in Chinese mainland, Hong Kong and Macao.

Commenting on the merger of the two banks, Patrick Fund, chairman and chief executive of Wing Hang Bank said, "we believe there will be a great potential in maximizing cross-selling and business referral opportunities with our expended customer base after the merger."

Founded in 1937, Wing Hang Bank was listed on Hong Kong Stock Exchange in 1993. It employs 2,100 staff with 41 branches in Hong Kong. Chekiang First Bank previously belonged to Japan's Mizuho Financial Group.

Source: Xinhua