KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 17 — RHB Investment Bank Bhd (RHBIB) is offering investment opportunities for local investors to invest in Taiwan and vice versa following the signing of a strategic partnership today with SinoPac Securities, a leading brokerage firm based in Taiwan.

RHBIB managing director/chief executive officer, Mike Chan, said under the partnership, RHBIB’s customers would have an access to the Taiwanese stocks and in turn, SinoPac would be able to promote Asean equities to their clients.

“These include cross-border mergers and investment banking cooperation on the areas of corporate finance, debt capital markets as well as mergers and acquisitions,” he said today.

Chan said the investment bank recognised that Malaysian investors were increasingly looking outwards to invest their capital.

“As such, RHBIB will continue to move forward as a regional financial services platform that will be able to provide our clients with a broader range of financial products and services, global research and significant investment opportunities,” he said.

He said sectors such as bioscience, lifesciene and high technology would provide growth opportunities for Malaysian companies seeking to expand their businesses in Taiwan.

Chan said SinoPac, ranked among the top five in equities and warrants trading businesses, was the first Taiwanese Bank licensed to invest in China’s interbank bond market.

“It is also the first brokerage to assist Taiwanese enterprises to issue renminbi dim-sum bonds and the only brokerage firm authorised by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority to auction dim-sum bonds on behalf of its clients.

On whether Malaysians would have access to issue renminbi dim-sum bonds, he said the investment bank would work with SinoPac to get this (the access).

“RHBIB don’t have the infrastructure but our partner has it, so together we can work something up.

“The whole idea is to help Malaysian corporates to issue bonds... for example in Hong Kong,  China and Taiwan,” he said.

The partnership, signed today, is RHBIB’s second strategic alliance for 2014 following the signing of a strategic partnership last month with Espirito Santo Investment Bank, a leading European investment bank. — Bernama