The Industrial and Commercial Bank (ICBC) of China (Malaysia) Bhd was launched on Wednesday in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia's capital.

ICBC Malaysia will have four branches with the main office located in the heart of Kuala Lumpur.

The biggest commercial bank in China was granted the license by Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM), Malaysia's central bank, to open a subsidiary bank in Malaysia in November last year.

Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak said here at the launching ceremony on Wednesday that he hoped the Malaysia-China trade would double in five to six years.

Najib, also Malaysian Finance Minister, said that the deepening of trade linkages between China and Malaysia had led to China becoming Malaysia's largest trading partner last year.

While Malaysian companies had a strong presence in the wholesale and retail sector in China, Najib said he hoped the areas of involvement could be expanded to include energy, fisheries, agriculture and technology.

Meanwhile, ICBC's president Yang Kaisheng said that the ever increasing economic, trade and investment activities between the two nations had laid a solid foundation for further financial industry development.

The strong footing also created new demands for banking services, added Yang.

ICBC Malaysia will vigorously integrate itself into the local financial market and play an active role in serving bilateral economic exchanges and trade.

The total assets of ICBC's overseas operations reached around 50 billion U.S. dollars at the end of 2009, a surge of 23 percent compared to the beginning of 2009.

Presently, the bank has extended its network across 21 countries and regions around the world, with a total of 163 overseas institutions.

It also has correspondent banking relationship with 1,403 banks in 125 countries and regions, which, combined, constituted a worldwide financial service platform.