Foreign banks opening branches in Myanmar for first time in decades

Yangon

TWO Japanese and one Singaporean bank will become the first foreign banks to operate in Myanmar for decades when they open branches on April 23, as the country emerges from a long phase of economic isolation, state media reported on Thursday. "The Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi UFJ (BTMU), Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC) and Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation became the first to clear the final hurdle among nine foreign lenders awarded preliminary approval," the state- backed Global New Light of Myanmar newspaper reported.

Crippled by mismanagement during 49 years of military regimes and cut off from much of the world due to Western sanctions, the domestic banking sector remains ill-equipped to provide services to local citizens, let alone global companies.