The prospects for growth in settling yuan-denominated trade remains large Peter Pang, deputy chief executive of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, said earlier this year.

Last year the mainland accounted for 8.8 per cent of global trade while only 2.5 per cent of its total trade was settled in yuan.

Pang said if yuan-denominated trade picked up, Hong Kong would benefit as the city captured about 75 per cent of the mainland's yuan trade settlements last year.

Collaboration with its parent also saw approved loan facilities to CBI from China Citic Bank referrals jump 262 per cent to HK$20 billion last year.

CBI is now planning to branch out in the Asean region, hoping to be present in Australia, Taiwan and Indonesia within three to five years, said Roy Huang, head of international banking, CBI. CBI officially opened its Singapore branch last week, after a soft launch in December last year, and will double its head count in Singapore to 50 this year.

The branch will focus on wholesale banking at this stage. It turned over HK$4 billion in trade finance in the first three months of the year.

The bank expects the branch to break even around June next year and produce an average 30 per cent year-on-year revenue growth in wholesale banking business over the next three years.

Huang said most of the growth in Singapore would come from trade-related business from mainland companies expanding overseas.

The bank hopes to open a representative office in Australia by the end of this year. It is also doing a feasibility study on a branch opening in Taiwan, aiming to open a representative office.

After soft launching its private bank in Hong Kong last July, the bank is scheduled to open a private banking business in Singapore next year.