As foreign-funded banks accelerate their penetration into the SME financing segment in order to compete with state-owned commercial banks, smaller Chinese commercial banks are seeking to do the same in order to secure a more extensive client base.

Capital is the key to a company's growth, and real estate developers in China are constantly faced with the problem of how to get it, given the limited financing channel and high thresholds that characterize the Chinese financial industry.  Hengda Real Estate Group has thus reached out to three international strategic investors, Merril Lynch & Co., Deutsche Bank, and Temasek Holdings, which have invested US$400 million in the company.  This move further encourages the industry to seek overseas and private funding rather than apply for developer loans at commercial banks in China.

Cafes and teahouses provide not only beverages, but also spaces for leisure activities, socialization and relaxation.  Starbucks Coffee has achieved incredible success as a franchise by creating customer-oriented environments that provide consumers with a  coffeehouse experience along with their drinks.  Traditional Chinese teahouses, on the other hand,  might find it difficult to create a market-based model that easily incorporates tea culture.  How likely is it, then, that a commercialized teahouse franchise might blossom in China?

Alibaba has been a hottie in both media and Internet industry lately with eBay shuts down in China as it pinched by Taobao, which is followed by the news of Alibaba’s software strategy that can hurt eBay further. Alibaba Group’s Vice-president of Corporate Affairs Porter Erisman talks to Amy Cheung of The China Perspective on how e-commerce, China’s SMEs and Internet citizens create a thriving marketplace.