(Insider Stories) - Singapore’s United Overseas Bank (UOB) has launched its new advisory division in Jakarta, to boost lending by twice and to tap more business opportunities from state run Chinese companies operating in the region.

The foreign companies are using Singapore as a regional base for expansion into other emerging economics, including Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Myanmar.

Previously, the bank launched its advisory units in Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok and Shanghai, after opening its first bank in Singapore in 2011. The bank is also mulling to roll out two units in Hong Kong and Ho Chi Minh City next month, while one in Yangon is expected to be established by the end of 2013.

Meanwhile, PT Bank UOB Indonesia plans to target corporate clients in a push to double its stake in the domestic lending market, CEO Arman B. Arief said.
 
The bank hopes to increase its corporate credit accounts from Rp 22 trillion ($22 billion) to Rp 40 trillion in three years’ time on the back of foreign investment and domestic consumption. The bank plans to set up a special foreign direct investment unit to handle outside companies interested in the nation’s domestic market.
 
The FDI unit will target companies looking to expand their presence in Indonesia’s retail and manufacturing sectors, Eric Tham, managing director UOB group commercial banking, said.