Shanghai Pudong Development Bank
Shanghai Pudong Development Bank (SPDB), run by president Pan Weidong, is recognized by both its state-owned and joint stock commercial peers as a leading Chinese joint stock bank in gold trading. Over the last five years, its turnover from retail customers trading gold on the Shanghai Gold Exchange jumped 28 times, from Rmb41.6 billion ($5.8 billion) in 2014 to a record Rmb1.21 trillion in 2019. Year-on-year growth was nearly 127%.
SPDB’s secret, at least in part, lies in its efforts to educate investors, which turned out to be crucial in 2019.
Last year, gold prices continued to rise, resulting in a market that was crowded by new retail clients. While that has given a boost to SPDB’s business, it also brought new challenges in investor education.
SPDB developed a digital training app, so that more than 3,600 wealth managers can help retail clients develop a better understanding of the precious metals market.
In addition to education programmes, the bank also uses its online trading platform in combination with third-party platforms to redirect clients to SPDB. In 2019, it gained 340,000 new clients.