(Yicai Global) Dec. 3 -- Fubon Financial Holding, a large financial company headquartered in Taiwan, has taken a direct stake in Xiamen Bank for the first time, marking a step forward in cross-straits financial ties.

Fubon Financial bought 19.95 percent of the Fujian province-based commercial lender from Fubon Bank Hong Kong on Nov. 30 to become Xiamen Bank's second-largest shareholder, abandoning indirect holdings held through third-party subsidiaries, China's state news agency Xinhua reported. The pair also signed a cooperation deal.

The move will make collaboration and communication between the two sides more straightforward, Xinhua citied Xiamen Bank Chairman Wu Shiqun as saying. It will also help the bank enhance its capital strength and improve management efficiency, he added.

Fubon Bank Hong Kong, a wholly owned unit of Fubon Financial, became a strategic investor in Xiamen Bank in 2008, and the first commercial bank with investment from Taiwan to make such a move in China's mainland.

Xiamen Bank posted total assets of CNY215.1 billion (USD30.9 billion) as of the end of September, while ownership equity was CNY13.2 billion, and net profits were CNY1.4 billion.

Editor: William Clegg