HONG KONG (Yonhap News) – South Korea's second-largest lender Shinhan Bank said Friday it has opened its first branch in the western region of China, amid rapid economic growth recently witnessed in China's less developed region.

Shinhan Bank said its twelfth Chinese branch opened in Changsha, the capital city of the south-central Hunan province. It has become the third foreign bank to set up a branch in Hunan, following HSBC and Citibank.

The South Korean bank, which set up its China subsidiary in 2008, earned a license in the following year to provide banking services to individuals in the Chinese currency.

It has also launched retail banking service in China, such as Internet-banking service and investment product sales.

The new branch will have working capital worth 100 million yuan ($15.7 million), accept deposits, and issue short-, medium- and long-term loans, as well as operating a foreign exchange business and yuan business.