Big plans in Little China: Luxembourg steals a march in the race to become Europe’s renminbi centre

Forget about the Belgian dentists and German doctors of old. Today, Luxembourg’s streets are filling with Chinese bankers. They see the Grand Duchy as a hub for their European operations – not least for trading and settlement of the renminbi. Are London, Frankfurt and Paris in danger of being left behind?

Industrial and Commercial Bank of China’s European headquarters dominate a picture-postcard location in the heart of Luxembourg City, the sleepy, tree-enveloped capital of the tiny yet financially powerful country.

The towering building of the world’s largest bank looks out over the Adolphe Bridge, a national symbol that spans the Pétrusse valley, connecting Boulevard Royal, in the area of Ville Haute, to Avenue de la Liberté, in Gare.

It is a prime piece of real estate once owned by HSBC that says as much about ICBC’s remarkable rise on the world banking stage as it does about the importance ICBC associates with its banking presence in Luxembourg.

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