Xinjiang Hualing Industry and Trade (Group) Co has acquired 90% of Georgian JSC Basisbank, becoming the first Chinese private company to buy a commercial bank overseas. The acquisition was sealed after the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the bank’s Supervisory Board Chairman Zurab Tsikhistavi agreed on the deal. The EBRD and Tsikhistavi, as the bank’s single international shareholder and the founder, will each retain 5% stake. The bank will change its name and operate in Tbilisi and Kutaisi, Georgia’s second largest city. Founded in 1993, Basisbank ranked 11th among Georgia’s 19 existing commercial banks by total assets. Its assets were valued at USD94 million at the end of March.