Bank of Communications -- the first one among China's big-five banks to introduce overseas strategic investors, the first one listed overseas and the only one headquartered in Shanghai -- joined the World Expo 2010 as an official partner today.

The Bureau of Shanghai World Expo Coordination and Bank of Communications (or BOCOM) signed the agreement. The bank promised to provide qualified and efficient financial services for the event.

Shanghai Vice Mayor Yang Xiong, who is also a member of the Organising Committee of the World Expo 2010 Shanghai, together with Zhong Yanqun, standing deputy director of the Shanghai 2010 World Expo Executive Committee and Jiang Chaoliang, BOCOM's chairman, attended the signing ceremony.

So far, four enterprises have become the World Expo 2010 Shanghai's official partners. They are China Eastern Airline, China Mobile, Chine Telecom and the new comer -- BOCOM.

BOCOM has designed a batch of financial products to cater for the needs of the World Expo.

For example, it plans to launch a global network to sell Expo tickets. Also, it will provide convenient personal and corporate banking services to Expo visitors and various Expo projects.

The bank said it had established a department to deal with Expo businesses in particular. It would also design a series of programs to train its staff, aiming at providing better service for the World Expo.

According to the Application for Registration, World Expo 2010 sponsorship has a two-level structure: partner level and senior sponsor level. Partners are at the highest level in the sponsorship system.

The organisers evaluate the enterprises concerned according to five major standards: compatibility with the image of World Expo 2010 Shanghai; financial potential; advertising or public relations expenditure worldwide; China affinity or extent of internationalization and interest in becoming World Expo 2010 sponsors.