ICBC to Acquire Stake in Bank of East Asia Network

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Industrial & Commercial Bank of China Ltd., the world’s biggest lender by market value, agreed to buy a stake in Bank of East Asia Ltd.’s U.S. operations, a person with direct knowledge of the deal said, declining to be identified because the acquisition hasn’t been announced.

The transaction would mark the first purchase of a majority stake in a U.S. depository institution by a Chinese bank. If completed, it may give financial firms in both countries greater access to each others’ markets, said Chip MacDonald, a partner at law firm Jones Day in Atlanta.