China's foreign exchange watchdog said Thursday it had raised the qualified foreign institutional investor (QFII) quota by US$100 million for Hong Kong & Shanghai Banking Corp., an HSBC Holdings Plc. unit.

The increase would bring the HSBC unit's total QFII quota to US$200 million, the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE) said in a statement.

Another HSBC unit, Hang Seng Bank Ltd., had already received a separate quota of US$50 million, the watchdog said.

The quotas are part of China's QFII program, which allows overseas institutions to invest in and trade yuan-denominated bonds and A shares listed on the domestic exchanges.

By the end of November, China had approved QFII licenses for 24 overseas investors with a combined quota of US$3.23 billion.

Last Tuesday, Britain's Barclays Bank Plc. said it had won approval from the SAFE to open a yuan-denominated special account at Standard Chartered Shanghai Branch. It received a QFII license in September with a quota of US$75 million.

On the same day, the regulator said it had raised the investment quota for Deutsche Bank AG to US$150 million from US$50 million.

Source: Shenzhen Daily-Agencies