In the past 83 years, the bank has made various significant achievements. It was the first local Chinese bank to be incorporated as a public company with shares quoted on the stock exchanges. In 1969, it became the first local bank to computerise its operations. In 1975, it launched the first Hong Kong dollar credit card in conjunction with the Bank of America. In 1995, the bank acquired United Chinese Bank, adding 19 outlets to its local branch network. In 1999, it became the first bank in Hong Kong to offer cybertrading, an online share trading service. In the same year, the bank launched Cyberbanking to enable customers to manage finances anytime, anywhere through a variety of electronic channels. In December 2000, the bank successfully acquired First Pacific Bank, giving the bank a competitive advantage in the local market.

Today, the Bank of East Asia is the largest independent local bank in Hong Kong with total assets of HK$177 billion. With over 5,000 staff members, the bank operates 133 branches in Hong Kong, 16 in China and an overseas network spreading to the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, the British Virgin Islands, Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam.

Several of the properties closely identified with the company are historic icons in the hospitality industry; their heritage has been carefully preserved even as they have been positioned for the future. These include the flagship Peninsula Hong Kong (1928); The Peninsula New York (1905 Beaux Arts building, originally The Gotham Hotel); and the 1984 reconstruction of the facade of The Repulse Bay Hotel (1920).

International expansion of The Peninsula brand began in the second half of the 20th century. At the beginning of the 21st century, the premier business of the company is the ownership and operation of deluxe hotels in international gateway cities.

The current portfolio includes eight operating hotels in Asia and the USA, with a ninth under construction. On completion of The Peninsula Chicago in mid-2001, the room inventory will total 3,312. In addition to rooms revenues, the company derives income from shopping arcades and office space in several of the hotels, with net lettable commercial space of 193,644 square feet.

JEC Hong Kong staff in the 1930s.

Jardine Engineering Corporation Ltd's (JEC) memorable history began in Shanghai in 1923. Born out of the Engineering Department of Jardine Matheson Group, this specialist engineering company set out with the specific aim of servicing a rapidly industrializing Shanghai as well as the vast development that was starting to take place all over China. These early activities included railways, textile machinery, marine motors, electrical appliances, paint and oil, all necessary constituents for the infrastructure of a modernizing economy.

JEC's involvement in the building sector also dates back to its Shanghai origins, when it was a leading provider of building services systems, including elevators and air-conditioning. Subsequently, the company built up a portfolio of international products and expertise tailored to the post-war Hong Kong market.

Today, JEC is one of the region's leading engineering companies. Headquartered in Hong Kong, its expansion, from an initial 50 staff to some 2,500 stationed in Hong Kong, Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Thailand, the Philippines, Taiwan, and Hawaii today, is proof of a well-founded objective which continues to flourish under strategic management, investment and joint venture operations.