State Council announces 11 measures to promote opening of financial industry

The Office of the Financial Committee of the State Council announced 11 measures to promote the further opening of the financial industry on the afternoon of July 20.

The measures aim to further open up the Chinese financial market to the world.

Here are the 11 measures:

1. Foreign-invested companies are allowed to conduct credit rating business in China, including all types of bond ratings in the inter-bank bond market and the exchange bond market.

2. Overseas financial institutions are encouraged to participate in the establishment and investment of shares.

3. Overseas asset management institutions are allowed to establish joint ventures with subsidiaries of Chinese banks or insurance companies to establish wealth management companies which are controlled by the foreign side.

4. Overseas financial institutions are allowed to set up or take stakes in pension management companies.

5. Foreign investors are encouraged to establish wholly owned currency brokerage companies, or hold shares in them.

6. The shareholding ratio of foreign insurance companies in the total equity of foreign-invested life insurance companies has been increased from 51 to 100 percent. The schedule for the transition period has been pushed ahead to 2020 from 2021.

7. The regulation that domestic insurance companies shall hold no less than 75 percent of the total shares of the insurance asset management company is no longer in effect, allowing foreign investors to hold more than 25 percent of the shares.

8. The entry qualifications for foreign-invested insurance companies are relaxed, with the cancellation of the entry restriction of 30-year business life requirement.

9. The schedule for canceling the limit on foreign-invested shareholding ratio for securities companies, fund management companies and futures companies has been pushed ahead from 2021 to 2020.

10. Foreign-funded institutions are allowed to obtain the Class A lead underwriting license for the inter-bank bond market.

11. The investment of overseas institutional investors is further facilitated in the inter-bank bond market.