A customer stands at the font door of the Bank of East Asia in Hong Kong. [Shanghai Daily]

The Bank of East Asia (China) Ltd. has conducted stable operations on the mainland for several years and its current fundamentals are sound, a banking regulator said on Thursday.

"The China Banking Regulatory Commission supports the judgments of the Bank of East Asia (BEA) by the Monetary Authority of Hong Kong," Yang Liping, deputy director of the agency's Banking Supervision Department III, said in a statement.

Panicked customers on Wednesday queued outside BEA branches across Hong Kong to withdraw deposits after hearing rumors that the lender was in financial trouble.

"Local banks are well capitalized and highly liquid. Their asset quality is good and their operations have been strong. Bank of East Asia's capital adequacy and liquidity ratios are well above regulatory requirements," the Monetary Authority of Hong Kong said in a statement on Wednesday.

The Monetary Authority injected 3.9 billion Hong Kong dollars (US$502 million) into the banking system to ease the credit strains, Chief Executive Joseph Yam said on Thursday.

Yam said in Hong Kong that the authority will monitor the market closely and inject more liquidity if necessary.

(Xinhua News Agency September 26, 2008)

Related:

·Depositors calm after HK bank run

The run on Bank of East Asia (BEA) eased yesterday after reassurance from officials and a high-profile tycoon's stock purchase helped soothe panicked depositors.

Fewer people were seen lining up outside the bank's branches on the news that the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) injected HK$3.88 billion to the inter-bank market and that Li Ka-shing, the city's richest person, had bought BEA shares. [Full story]

·No panic in BEA's mainland branches

Mainland depositors seemed to have shrugged off the "malicious rumor" that Bank of East Asia is in trouble, but analysts say the turmoil is a reminder to local lenders that a perceived lack of communication can trigger chaos at a time of financial uncertainties.

"There is no sign of irregular cash withdrawal in our mainland branches," said Sun Minjie, executive vice-president of the bank's mainland subsidiary, at a news conference in Shanghai yesterday. "Still, we have increased temporary liquidity just in case." [Full story]