Tian Guoli, chairman of Bank of China Ltd, the fourth-largest State-owned commercial lender, called for the building of "a financial artery" for the Belt and Road Initiative, to stimulate an economic liftoff in countries along the routes.

He highlighted the importance of "reinforcing cross-border cooperation to expand financial sources" for the implementation of the B&R Initiative. He also highlighted "introducing innovative financial tools to make transparent the B&R investment returns, building a more reliable hedging mechanism to diversify risks associated with B&R projects, and promoting the cross-border use of renminbi to open a new investment and financing channel", while attending the fourth Lamfalussy Lectures Conference in Budapest on Monday.

Proposed by President Xi Jinping in 2013, the Belt and Road Initiative aims to promote the connectivity of Asian, European and African continents and their adjacent seas.