Macao Secretary for the Economy and Finance Lei Wai Nong has said the Macao Central Securities Depository will help the city perform its function as a place where enterprises in China and the Portuguese-speaking world can conduct business, according to the Monetary Authority of Macao, or AMCM.

A written statement issued by the AMCM quotes Mr Lei as saying the newly opened depository will improve the market in Macao for offshore bonds denominated in renminbi, the better to meet the needs of mainland Chinese issuers and international investors.

The depository was opened for business in a ceremony last week at the China-Portuguese-speaking Countries Commercial and Trade Service Platform Complex, the authority says.

China Central Depository & Clearing Co. Ltd Deputy General Manager Xu Liangdui, whose company helped set up the depository, promised to work with the AMCM to make Macao a big market for doing renminbi business offshore, and an important gateway for access to the securities market in China, according to the statement by the authority.