Chinatrust Financial Holding is planning to set up a private banking service in Taiwan by the end of 2011, Reuters reports.

The move comes amid talks over the potential takeover of MetLife's Taiwanese insurance unit by Chinatrust, Yuanta Financial Holding, and Mercuries Life Insurance, which will reportedly be completed around April. Chinatrust has been vocal about wanting to expand its insurance offering, although it has been somewhat tight-lipped about its plans after it failed to acquire American International Group's Taiwanese arm, Nan Shan Life Insurance, in January.

The upcoming private banking offering will be primarily focused on high net worth clients, starting with the existing ones from Chinatrust's wealth management business. Besides Taiwan, new offices are also in the works for Hong Kong and Singapore.

At a news conference , Daniel Wu, president of Chinatrust, reportedly said that the company is seeking to double the contribution from overseas operations from 15 per cent to about 30 per cent in three to four years, with much of the growth coming from the likes of Singapore and Indonesia. The company posted T$14.1 billion ($478 million) in full-year net profit for 2010.