CITI yesterday opened its new sub-branch in the Shanghai pilot free trade zone, which will help multinational corporations to expand their operations in China.

The new sub-branch will initially focus on corporate clients with cross-border financing needs. The business scope will be gradually expanded following new policies in the FTZ. Its current services include global cash management, cross-border trade finance and financial market products.

"Our clients in Singapore and Hong Kong have expressed the most interest in the development of the FTZ," Cline Zhang, the branch manager of Citi's FTZ sub-branch, said at the press conference yesterday.