After Chinese banks took stakes in both Barclays and Bear Stearns, it is easy to see why ICBC wanted a piece of Standard Bank, Africa's largest bank by assets. South African banking stocks, hit by rising interest rates and low growth perceptions, trade on 30 per cent price/earnings discounts to their emerging market peers. That is the widest gap for more than three and a half years.

Standard trades on a forward p/e multiple of 10-times. State-controlled ICBC enjoys a multiple of 40-times and hopes to exploit China's economic ties with Africa. Standard has a presence in 17 other African countries and a strong investment banking franchise in mining and energy.