Zheshang Bank issues bonds and loans for MSEs

China Zheshang Bank has issued 1.5 billion yuan ($245 million) in five-year corporate bonds for micro and small-sized enterprises to offer support for the development of MSEs, Moneyweek reported.

By the end of August, China Zheshang Bank issued loans for 31,658 small and micro enterprises for more than 66.1 billion yuan, with the balance of those loans 32 percent of total loans.

On Sept 5, the China Banking Regulatory Commission issued its second guideline document in the past one month to help small and micro enterprises with improved financial services.

China Zheshang Bank has focused on financial services for MSEs since it launched China's first branch especially for small enterprises in Hangzhou on June 2006. By the end of August, the bank had 76 branches for small enterprises throughout the country, 72 percent of its total branches.

Zheshang Bank said more bonds would be issued if the demand from MSEs kept growing.

In Zhejiang province, other banks have similar service structures, including the Bank of Hangzhou. The Bank of Hangzhou issued 8 billion yuan in corporate bonds for MSEs on March 2012 with the balance of those loans more than 56 billion yuan, higher than at Zheshang Bank.