The LA Times is reporting Sotheby’s auction house will be increasing it’s presence in China thanks to a ten-year partnership with a state-owned Chinese art company. The new company will be majority controlled by Sotheby’s and the rest controlled by Beijing GeHua Art Co. The new business will be called Sotheny’s (Beijing) Auction Co., Ltd. and according the Sotheby’s, the new company will be the first international fine-art auction house in China.

The proposed company is still waiting for approval from the Chinese governemtent but if all goes according to plan, Sotheby’s will start putting together a series of world-class auctions and exhibitions overseas.

Under the new deal, Sotheby’s said it would focus on auctions and exhibitions. It said it would take advantage of the Tianzhu Free Trade Zone in Beijing, which offers tax-advantaged storage. The first auction of the deal is scheduled to take place later this week at the Millennium Hall of the Beijing World Art Museum at the China Millennium Monument.

In the past, the Chinese government has strictly controlled art sales by international auction houses, often limiting them to Hong Kong.

Read more from the LA Times here.