Alipay, one of the largest independent third-party payment service providers in China, has formally reached an agreement with Marui Company, one of the oldest department stores in Japan.

The Industrial and Commercial Bank of China has reached an agreement with the Bank of East Asia on an equity transaction, in which ICBC will acquire a 70% stake in the Canadian subsidiary of BEA for CAD80.25 million.

According to China Mobile's Shanghai branch, its regulations related to micropayments made with mobile phones have been completed and consumers in Shanghai will soon be able to pay with mobile phones in McDonald's and Starbucks.

China's Shanghai Pudong Development Bank has published its annual financial report for 2008, stating that its net profit increased by 127.61% year-on-year to CNY12.516 billion while its earnings per share increased by 127.7% to CNY2.21.

Offshore software development company VanceInfo Technologies Inc. will deploy an outsourced development center for China Merchants Bank.

U.K.-based Standard Chartered Bank has opened its first village bank, Inner Mongolia Helingeer Standard Chartered Village Bank, making it the first foreign bank to enter China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.