BOCI was established against the backdrop of China's economic reform and open-door policy and has continued to flourish along with the rapid economic growth of China. With an in-depth local knowledge of the China and an international perspective on global markets, BOCI is an expert in the China capital market business. BOCI stands out in a number of areas, including product and service range,  business structure, sales network, excellent track record and deep experience in capital market operations.

BOCI has created an organizational framework with an effective integrated management system. It has subsidiaries in New York, London, Hong Kong and Singapore, and a sales network covering most major Chinese cities such as Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Chongqing. With a team of seasoned financial professionals, a broad institutional and retail sales network and a global management operation, BOCI is well-positioned to offer its clients a wide range of investment banking services, including securities underwriting, mergers & acquisitions, financial advisory, equity sales & trading, equity derivatives, fixed income, asset management and private equity investments.

In February 2002, BOCI set up BOC International (China) Limited ("BOCI (China)") in Shanghai in partnership with five leading domestic investors: China National Petroleum Corp, State Development & Investment Corp, Yuxi Hongta Tobacco (Group) Co Ltd, China General Technology (Group) Holdings Ltd and Shanghai State-owned Assets Operations Co Ltd. It was the first Sino-foreign joint venture securities firm to be licensed to carry out renminbi-denominated securities businesses. In 2006, BOCI (China) was awarded "Financial Product Innovation" status by the China Securities Regulatory Commission.