(Yicai Global) March 31 -- China Mobile’s USD6.6 billion equity purchase in state-owned lender Postal Savings Bank of China earlier this week will help the world’s largest mobile network operator by number of subscribers extend its information technology services into the finance sector and the carrier expects to reap big dividends in the future, The Paper reported today.

In the long term, this investment is expected to bring considerable financial benefits, China Mobile said. The valuation of the banking industry has been low in recent years but the sector will maintain stable growth and the valuation will be adjusted.

China Mobile paid CNY45 billion (USD6.6 billion) for 6.8 billion newly issued shares in Postal Savings Bank on March 29 to gain a 6.8 percent stake. It is now the second-largest shareholder after China Post Group which holds 62.8 percent equity. The new shares have a lockup period of five years.

Financial technology is a key part of China Mobile’s blue ocean of information services, the Beijing-based carrier said. “Information services plus finance” will bring new impetus to the development of the information and finance sectors. Banks’ investment in information technology is much higher than that of other industries, it added.

The close cooperation between China Mobile and Postal Savings Bank will help China Mobile integrate into the banking vertical and provide IT services to Postal Savings Bank, which serves over 600 million customers and has nearly 40,000 outlets across the country, while also providing services to other banks.

The most direct effect of China Mobile’s buy-in is to boost liquidity which will enhance the Beijing-based lender’s ability to serve the real economy and withstand risk, Liu Jianjun, president of the Postal Savings Bank, said at the earnings call today.

In future, the strategic tie-up between the two parties will cover many aspects, including rural revitalization, financial technology, financial and investment cooperation, and financial business cooperation in the industrial chain, said China Mobile, which boasts more than 900 million mobile users, over 200 million home subscribers and more than 15 million government and business customers.

Editor: Kim Taylor