As foreign financiers wonder when China’s big banks will go after overseas markets, they are keeping a close eye on Li Jiange. Since taking over as chairman of CICC in 2008, Li has used his bank’s domestic strength to climb the league tables. The bank ranked first as a corporate bond book runner in Asia ex-Japan from January to mid-November, raising $24.7 billion, according to Dealogic.
Li helped pioneer Chinese reforms as a senior aide to former premier Zhu Rongji in the 1990s. His next moves could be equally influential as he prepares state-controlled CICC for an IPO and looks to expand in New York and London.
