Four more foreign banks get Myanmar licence

Four more foreign banks have been given preliminary approval to operate in Myanmar, state media reported Sunday, the latest government attempt to attract overseas investment to the emergent nation.

Myanmar's banking system was closed for decades to outside competition under junta rule, leaving the country laden with a creaking financial infrastructure and a populace deeply suspicious of banks.

But that has slowly begun to change since outright military rule gave way to a reformist government in 2011 that paved the way for last November's landmark elections.

The four new banks that have been given initial approval are Vietnam's Bank for Investment and Development, Taiwan's E.SUN Commercial Bank, South Korea's Shinhan Bank and the State Bank of India, the Global New Light of Myanmar said, quoting the Central Bank of Myanmar.