31 Dec 2004

BOCHK announces Senior-Management appointments – Search Committee completes open and competitive recruitment of deputy chief executives and chief information officer

The Board of Directors of BOC (Holdings) Limited (“the Company”, stock code “2388”, US ADRs: “BHKLY”) today announced the appointments of Mr Gao Yingxin as the Deputy Chief Executive (Head of Corporate Banking), Mr Alex Cheung Yau Shing as the Chief Risk Officer, and Mr Peter Liu Yun Kwan as the Chief Information Officer for its principal subsidiary of (Hong Kong) Limited (the “Bank”).

Mr Gao Yingxin joins the Bank as Deputy Chief Executive (Head of Corporate Banking). His prior position was President and Chief Operating Officer of BOC International Holdings Limited in Hong Kong. In 1999, he became General Manager of Corporate Banking at (“BOC”) Head Office where he was responsible for managing and building BOC Group’s customer relationships with and global financing for multinational corporations and premium domestic clients in the Mainland of China. He was also in charge of BOC’s major financing projects. Mr Gao obtained a master’s degree in Engineering from the East China University of Science and Technology in in 1986. Then he joined BOC Head Office where he began working on financing projects for various industries. Mr Gao also attended executive business programmes at the Wharton School of Business and the John F. Kennedy School of Government, and was seconded for one year to the Finance Department of Northern Telecom (Nortel) Head Office in Canada.

Mr Alex Cheung Yau Shing joins the Bank as Chief Risk Officer. His prior position was assistant general manager and chief credit officer of Hang Seng Bank where he also headed the credit risk management department. He brings more than 20 years of accounting and banking experience to the Bank. Previously he held senior audit and accounting positions at Chase Manhattan Bank, the Hong Kong Government and KPMG. He holds a social sciences degree from the University of Hong Kong with a major in economics and management studies and is also a qualified accountant. Page 1 of 4 As deputy chief executives of the Bank, both appointments report to the Chief Executive.

Mr Peter Liu Yun Kwan joins the Bank as Chief Information Officer. His prior position was sector head – Business Consulting Services (Financial Services Sector) for IBM China/ Hong Kong Limited where he had overall responsibility for the financial services business consulting function covering all banking, insurance, fund management and securities institutions in Hong Kong. He brings 34 years of experience in computer operations and information technology to the Bank. Previously he held senior management positions in operations, financial control, business management and information technology at Citibank, Chase Manhattan Bank and UBS. He will join the management committee of the Bank and will report to the Chief Financial Officer.

Chairman of BOCHK’s Search Committee and Independent Non-Executive Director, Dr Victor Fung Kwok King commented on the appointments, “We are very pleased to have identified outstanding individuals to fill three key positions through a competitive, open and fair process”. He added, “I am satisfied that we have met our goal of recruiting candidates who possess in depth banking knowledge and have local (Hong Kong and the Mainland of China) and global experience as well as an ability and skill in assuming a leadership role and managing change in their respective fields”.

In thanking the Search Committee for their extensive and thorough work, Chairman of BOCHK, Mr , stressed that the appointments were in line with the Bank’s policy adopted earlier in the year to fortify its senior management. “We are committed to improving our operational structure having regard to international best practices that can ensure a higher degree of accountability to all our stakeholders and to be our customers’ premier bank,” said Mr Xiao.

In welcoming the appointments, Mr He Guangbei, Vice Chairman and Chief Executive of BOCHK, said, “The appointments mark an important milestone in the bank’s quest for strengthening its corporate governance and for growing its corporate banking business”

Page 2 of 4 “We are in the midst of an important strategic initiative to enhance our information infrastructure, to maximize our risk-adjusted returns and to focus on building our corporate banking services,” said Mr He.

“The new appointments, along with our recently appointed Chief Financial Officer and our long-serving Deputy Chief Executive for retail banking, reflect our pledge to attract and nurture high quality talent to help us achieve our goals,” concluded Mr He.

At its meeting on August 19, 2004, the Board of Directors (the “Board”) appointed a Search Committee to assist in the recruitment process for the nominated positions.

In addition to Dr Fung Kwok King, members of the Search Committee included Mr Sun Changji (Vice Chairman), Mr He Guangbei and the other Independent Non-Executive Directors – Mr Shan Weijian, Mr Tung Chee-chen and Madam Linda Tsao Yang.

In its effort to ensure fairness and openness throughout the recruitment process, the Search Committee appointed global headhunting agency Spencer Stuart who undertook the search of all potential candidates.

According to Dr Fung, recruitment notices with detailed job specifications were published in local, Mainland Chinese and international press. “Over 300 candidates were screened by the headhunting agency before a preliminary list was submitted to the Search Committee for review,” said Dr Fung. “The Search Committee then considered several short-listed candidates for each of the positions, including candidates from well-known local and international , and unanimously concluded that the chosen persons were by far and away the most distinguished and qualified for the relevant jobs,” concluded Dr Fung.

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Page 3 of 4 About BOC Hong Kong (Holdings) Limited

BOC Hong Kong (Holdings) Limited (“the Company”) was incorporated in Hong Kong on September 12, 2001 to hold the entire equity interest in Bank of China (Hong Kong) Limited, its principal operating subsidiary. The Company began trading on the main board of the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong on July 25, 2002, with stock code “2388”, US ADRs: “BHKLY”.

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