(Seychelles News Agency) - The State Bank of Mauritius will open a branch in the neighboring island nation of Seychelles, officials have said.

Opening a State Bank of Mauritius branch in the Seychelles is part of a regional integration strategy, Mauritius’ Finance Minister Vishnu Lutchmeenaraidoo said last week, according to published accounts in the Mauritian press.

“We are happy with the support of the Central Bank of the Seychelles in this regard,” Lutchmeenaraidoo was quoted as saying.

The State Bank of Mauritius is the second largest bank in Mauritius after the Mauritian Commercial Bank. The Mauritius Commercial bank (MCB) has been licensed in Seychelles since the 1990s.

In an interview with SNA on Monday, the governor of the Central Bank of Seychelles, Caroline Abel, confirmed that the State Bank of Mauritius made a banking license request in October last year.

“It is not normal procedure to comment on a request while it is in process,” said Abel. “We will inform the public once the decision has been made.”

Abel was in Mauritius last week upon the invitation of the Central Bank of Mauritius. The focus of the visit was the exchange of banking experiences of the two island states.

Businesses from Mauritius have been investing in the Seychelles, an archipelago in the western Indian Ocean. Air Seychelles flies to Mauritius weekly.