Silicon Valley Bank Adds Offshore Chinese Renminbi Services

SANTA CLARA, Calif., March 22, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Silicon Valley Bank (SVB), the premier commercial bank for companies in the technology, life science, venture capital and premium wine industries, announced the addition of offshore Renminbi to its tradable currencies at SVB's Foreign Exchange Trading Desk. In addition, SVB announced the launch of its offshore Renminbi Multi-Currency Account, adding to the growing list of currencies in which such services are available. These new services enable SVB's multi-national clientele to consolidate funds and settle international trade for goods and services in Renminbi when conducting business inside and outside mainland China.

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"Technology companies are often global at an early stage and require the ability to move money across borders seamlessly and to minimize foreign exchange risk," said Sanjay Mody, Head of Global Transaction Banking for Silicon Valley Bank. "Our new offshore Renminbi services will give our clients doing business in China a competitive advantage when it comes to setting prices and settling transactions in local currency."

SVB's Multi-Currency Accounts are foreign currency deposit accounts held at SVB that are FDIC insured and subject to U.S. regulatory requirements. SVB's new offshore Renminbi capabilities complement SVB's full suite of global treasury services, through which clients can transact in 140 countries and more than 50 currencies.

Today, SVB's clients can trade in offshore Renminbi and virtually all other freely traded currencies as well as most emerging market currencies on the global inter-bank market.

SVB takes a personalized and consultative approach to global treasury management for its clients. Through a large variety of foreign exchange services and deposit accounts, SVB helps clients protect the value of their foreign currency revenues, control the cost of their foreign currency payments, minimize the translational impact on their balance sheets and mitigate the risk on company's earnings due to conversion of foreign currency cash flow.

Find more perspective on the offshore Renminbi market from SVB's foreign exchange experts:

• "Beginning of a Long Journey:  Offshore CNH Creates New Investment Opportunities in China," by SVB's Senior FX Trader Joe O'Leary
• "Hedging and Investment Opportunities in China's Offshore CNH market," by Fernand Kong, SVB's Head of FX Trading
• "China's Currency Going Global with CNH," by SVB's Senior FX Trader Mark Noble

About Silicon Valley Bank

Silicon Valley Bank is the premier commercial bank for companies in the technology, life science, venture capital, private equity and premium wine industries. SVB provides a comprehensive suite of financing solutions, treasury management, corporate investment and international banking services to its clients worldwide. Through its focus on specialized markets and extensive knowledge of the people and business issues driving them, Silicon Valley Bank provides a level of service and partnership that measurably impacts its clients' success. Founded in 1983 and headquartered in Santa Clara, Calif., the company serves clients around the world through 26 U.S. offices and international operations in China, India, Israel and the United Kingdom. Silicon Valley Bank is a member of global financial services firm SVB Financial Group (NASDAQ: SIVB), with SVB Analytics, SVB Capital, SVB Global and SVB Private Client Services.  More information on the company can be found at www.svb.com.

Silicon Valley Bank is the California bank subsidiary and the commercial banking operation of SVB Financial Group. Banking services are provided by Silicon Valley Bank, a member of the FDIC and the Federal Reserve System. SVB Private Client Services is a division of Silicon Valley Bank. SVB Financial Group is also a member of the Federal Reserve System. 

SOURCE Silicon Valley Bank