Switzerland's central bank said on Wednesday it had agreed with the People's Bank of China (PBOC) to establish clearing arrangements in Switzerland for renminbi trading and extend a pilot scheme for clients of Swiss banks.
"It (the arrangement) will promote the use of the renminbi by enterprises and financial institutions in cross-border transactions, and promote facilitation of bilateral trade and investment," the Swiss National Bank said in a statement.
Alongside the pact, the PBOC will extend a pilot scheme for foreign investors to clients of Swiss banks, with a quota of up to 50 billion yuan ($8 billion). "We are willing to make Switzerland one of the centres of offshore RMB business," Chinese Premier Li Keqiang told the World Economic Forum. He said China was committed to opening up more to the outside world, and planned to deepen reforms of financial services and foreign exchange.