Shanghai Pudong Development Bank Co Ltd said on Wednesday night that it has signed agreement to acquire a Hong Kong-based asset management firm for HK$8.5 million ($1.10 million) from companies including AsiaVest Partners Ltd.

In its announcement, the bank said the asset management firm holds licenses for providing investment banking and fund management services.

After closing the acquisition, SPDB will inject funds into the firm and turn it into a cross-border investment and financing service platform, as well as an investment banking business platform, with a focus on serving domestic clients and domestic business expansion, the announcement said.

The Shanghai-based lender said the acquisition will help improve its services in investment banking, one of its five key areas of business.

The other four strategic areas of SPDB are small- and medium-sized enterprise services, wealth management services and mobile financing services.

wuyiyao@chinadaily.com.cn