Regulator urges Asian economies to strengthen financial cooperation

An official of China's top banking and insurance regulator urged Asian economies to strengthen financial cooperation, improve financial inclusion and financial competitiveness, and give strong support to sustainable economic recovery.

Asian economies should encourage financial institutions to take an active part in cross-border business including supply chain finance, trade finance and transnational mergers and acquisitions, break through blockages of regional economic circulation, and promote resource and risk sharing within the region to enhance supply chain resilience, Zhou Liang, vice-chairman of the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission, said at the Asian Financial Summit Forum and Asian Financial Think Tank Annual Forum (2021) in Beijing on Thursday.

Asian economies should push for innovation of the financial institution system, the market system and the product system.

They should enrich green financial products, accelerate regional financial market integration and mobilize capital to participate in green investment. Asian economies should also improve regional green finance rules and explore possible routes and models for financial institutions to support their efforts to realize the goal of peaking carbon emissions and achieving carbon neutrality, Zhou said.

He stressed the importance of pushing ahead with the construction of Asian financial rules, regulations and standards, exploring cross-border financial risk control mechanisms, promoting dialogue and negotiations on risk management and financial regulation, as well as actively participating in the reform of the international financial system and rulemaking activities.

Looking forward, China will implement the new development concept and promote two-way opening-up of the financial sector firmly and steadily, he said.

The country will allow quality foreign financial institutions featuring specialized business to operate in China, with the aim of jointly building a more open and win-win financial ecosystem.

It will also encourage Chinese financial institutions to develop overseas business in a steady manner, optimize their deployment in countries and regions involved in the Belt and Road Initiative, and actively participate in international financial cooperation, he said.

In addition, China will build an institutional system and a regulatory model that corresponds to common international rules, fully implement the pre-access national treatment plus negative list administration system, improve the legal and policy system on overseas investment, continuously enhance risk control mechanisms, and create a market-oriented, law-based and internationalized business environment, Zhou said.