The bank is the first foreign invested commercial bank in western China, said IBM, adding that it is becoming one of the most profitable domestic commercial banks in the region with 113 branches and 2,000 employees.

The bank has also expanded into the newly opened Guanzhong - Tianshui Economic Zone in the province of Shaanxi where Xi'an is the provincial capital.

"The second ten-year plan for the western region development is about to be in action," said Jing Junhai, Vice Governor of Shaanxi Province. "We appreciate and welcome that IBM is enhancing investment in Xi'an. We hope more vendors will come to Xi'an to help make our city better and the western region more developed."