-   Chinese immigrants and international students can now open Canadian
        bank accounts at Scotiabank before departing for Canada

TORONTO, Nov. 6 /CNW/ - Scotiabank today announced a new partnership with China Everbright Bank (CEB), a leading financial institution in China, that provides immigrants and international students moving to Canada with the ability to open a Canadian bank account with Scotiabank while still in China.

"At Scotiabank, we understand that moving to another country is a big decision for many individuals," said Rania Llewellyn, Vice-President of Multicultural Banking, Scotiabank. "When newcomers arrive in Canada, their top priorities are to find a place to live, a job and a financial institution. Through our partnership with CEB, we are able to give newcomers a head start before their arrival by providing them with the ability to establish a relationship with a bank, and give them some stability in the midst of change."

Under the new agreement, Chinese immigrants and international students planning to move to Canada are able to open an account with Scotiabank through any of the 119 participating CEB outlets in 33 cities across China. Once in Canada, customers can visit any Scotiabank branch across Canada to activate their accounts, obtain a Visa card as well as enjoy other benefits of the Scotiabank StartRight program, Scotiabank's convenient banking package designed for newcomers to Canada.

"The launch of the CEB-Scotiabank partnership further expands CEB's reach in the financial services market for immigrants and international students going to Canada, and further strengthens the CEB brand as a specialized overseas financial services provider," said Mr. Xuyang Zhang, General Manager, Retail Banking Department, China Everbright Bank.

"We are proud to partner with CEB and to be able to leverage their strong presence in China to reach out and meet the banking needs of people before they embark on their journey to Canada," concluded Gina Li, Director, Asian Markets, Multicultural Banking, Scotiabank.

For more information on Scotiabank's StartRight Program for Newcomers, please visit www.startright.scotiabank.com.

About Multicultural Banking at Scotiabank
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Scotiabank continues to build on its solid foundation of serving Canada's multicultural communities with a dedicated Multicultural Banking division. Following the launch of the Scotiabank StartRight(TM) program for new Canadians in 2008, the Multicultural Banking group began a series of innovative partnerships and initiatives launched to offer unique opportunities for customers. As Canada's most international bank with a presence in some 50 countries around the world, Scotiabank understands the unique needs of Canada's multicultural communities. For more information on Multicultural Banking please visit www.startright.scotiabank.com.

About China Everbright Bank
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Established in August 1992, China Everbright Bank (CEB) is headquartered in Beijing and is a financial institution that is founded under the approval of the State Council and the People's Bank of China. Since its inception, CEB has been implementing a client-centered and market-oriented strategy in a prudent manner. It closely keeps up with the restructuring and development of the Chinese economy and the financial industry, and continuously reforms and updates itself, providing quality financial services to all its retail and corporate clients. CEB now covers 45 major cities of 23 provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions with its 30 branches and 426 banking outlets and one representative office in Hong Kong. For more information about China Everbright Bank, please visit www.cebbank.com.