President Ma Ying-jeou on the afternoon of July 11 at the Presidential Office met with Standard Chartered Group Chief Executive Mr. Peter Sands. In addition to expressing a warm welcome and appreciation to Mr. Sands, President Ma also explained to his guest the direction of the government's economic reform and liberalization policies.
President Ma noted that Standard Chartered is one of the world's largest banks and that it maintains branches and offices around the globe. Standard Chartered previously acquired Hsinchu International Bank and has been aggressively expanding in the local market. Standard Chartered, he said, is also actively involved in public service activities. President Ma especially pointed out that when he served as Taipei mayor, the city and Standard Chartered jointly carried out environmental protection activities. The bank not only supported bird watching and conservation projects in nature parks along the Tamsui River, but also encouraged its employees to volunteer to take part in these initiatives. This displayed the bank's determination to back up its words with action and also reflected the bank's dedication to carrying out its policies. The president said the actions of the bank in this regard left a deep impression on him.
President Ma said that upon taking office, the new government has been working aggressively to improve Taiwan's business environment. In particular, the government hopes to foster development of the financial services industry in Taiwan, making it a flagship industry within Taiwan's services sector. He added that in the future Taiwan will loosen restrictions and embrace liberalization. The government, he said, has already proposed a series of reform measures that will make it easier for foreign capital to enter the Taiwan market and will reduce restrictions on the purchase of foreign mutual funds by Taiwan investors. The president said that if reform measures of this type continue to be carried out, it is expected that some of the nearly NT$5 trillion of funds that has left Taiwan over the years will return to Taiwan's markets.
President Ma furthermore said that the government is making every effort to improve relations between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait. He said that the commencement of charter flights between the two sides during weekends and the opening of Taiwan to mainland tourists is just a small portion of the new government's liberalization measures aimed at turning Taiwan into a regional hub and enabling Taiwan to be in step with the rest of the world. Furthermore, he said that previous governments limited investment by Taiwan companies in Mainland China to no more than 40% of the company's net value. The restriction was even tighter for large-sized companies, which faced limitations of 20% or 30% of their net value. The Ministry of Economic Affairs, he said, is presently carrying out a comprehensive review of these restrictions and is considering abolishment or easing of the limits. The president said if companies establish their corporate headquarters in Taiwan, the government will consider providing a high level of liberalization in terms of investment limits. President Ma added that the relaxed rules will gradually be implemented in the coming months.
President Ma stressed that the objective of these liberalization measures is to strengthen Taiwan's economic structure and improve the investment environment, thereby increasing the willingness of local and foreign companies in investing on Taiwan. The inflationary pressure and economic weakness presently facing Taiwan could be alleviated to a degree if these goals are realized, he said. The president also said he hopes Standard Chartered will be able to maximize its operational performance amid opportunities that will emerge as the result of Taiwan's liberalization and development.
Mr. Sands was accompanied to the Presidential Office in the afternoon by Standard Chartered's Asia CEO Mr. Jaspal Bindra, Standard Chartered's Regional Chief Executive for North East Asia Mr. Nicholas Sallnow, and Standard Chartered Bank (Taiwan) Chairman Mr. Jim McCabe. Also in attendance was National Security Council Adviser Chan Man-jung.