OCBC Bank (Malaysia) Berhad (OCBC Bank) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Malaysia Chinese Restaurant Association (MCRA) to support over 100 of its China-based enterprises in the food and beverage industry through the former’s award-winning banking solutions to enable the latter’s growth aspirations.

MCRA was established in 2018 to promote the internationalisation of Chinese dining brands and to facilitate more catering business activities in Malaysia. A non-profit, self-regulating social organisation for the catering and related industries, it is officially registered with Malaysia’s Registrar of Societies and has overseas branches in several provinces of China including Sichuan, Hubei, Henan, and Shanxi. 

According to MCRA President-General Mr Gao HaoYun, the collaboration with OCBC Bank will help its members to streamline their banking processes beyond financing to include cash management and foreign exchange management solutions.

“We welcome this tie-up with OCBC Bank which has a long presence in Malaysia and recognised as being an integral part of the OCBC Group, strongly entrenched in ASEAN-Greater China as Southeast Asia’s second largest bank. We are confident our members will benefit immensely from this collaboration. Specifically, our members will be able to gain from OCBC Bank’s award-winning cash management and foreign exchange management services along with their financing products. Many of our members are looking to simplify processes and go digital; so, this tie-up is timely,” he said, adding that the industry is estimated to be worth USD13 billion.

“In addition, we believe that our China members will benefit from the OCBC’s dedicated China Business team as our partner to bridge any language and cultural gaps, and offer the essential resources required to capture business opportunities, such as financial services and better insights into the local business environment including rules and regulations,” Mr Gao added.

OCBC Bank’s Head of China Business Ms Leong Pei Pei said the collaboration with MCRA aligns with the Bank’s quest to bring its award-winning financial solutions to China-based F&B companies seeking to grow in Malaysia.

 “The robust F&B industry is making its way back following the setbacks of the recent pandemic, and we are looking to support the many small and medium size players in their journey toward starting, growing or accelerating their presence in the industry here. We are pleased to share that they will be able to leverage on our digital banking expertise and the full range of our financial solutions tailored to meet their unique needs. We trust our award-winning banking solutions will make their financial dealings smoother, enabling them to better serve their customers,” she said.

OCBC Bank Managing Director and Head of Emerging Business Mr Chan Kok Leong added that the Bank remains committed to both SMEs and China businesses seeking to gain a greater presence in Malaysia.

“We will continue to look out for meaningful collaborations and support the China-based SMEs in the country, along with our other SMEs, enabling them to fulfil their aspirations through our financing solutions, particularly our digitally-backed capabilities which will in turn provide a simple, fast and convenient approach to meeting their banking needs,” he said.

OCBC Malaysia recently won the coveted Euromoney Best Bank for Corporates in Malaysia in recognition of its ongoing commitment to providing innovative banking products and solutions during a year characterised by significant geopolitical and market headwinds.