Guangdong financial reform plan approved

A financial reform plan has been approved by the State Council and will soon be launched in the Pearl River Delta region in Guangdong province, after a similar program was introduced in Zhejiang province's Wenzhou city.

Chen Yunxian, vice-governor of Guangdong province, said at a recent conference that the program will have additional measures and more areas covered compared with the Wenzhou program, which was introduced in March.

Details on the program will be released soon, the Shanghai Securities News reported on June 28.

The financial sectors in Guangdong are different from those in Beijing, Shanghai and Hong Kong, as they attach more importance to international cooperation and industrial finance, Chen said.

According to the plan, Guangdong will continue to advance the cross-border RMB settlement pilot.

Guangdong Party Secretary Wang Yang said the province will promote the integration of financial sectors in the region, and strengthen the status of Guangzhou and Shenzhen as financial centers.

The government will also strive to intensify cooperation with Hong Kong and Macao, and upgrade the financial services level in less developed and rural areas, Wang said.

The output of the financial sectors has contributed to 6.3 percent of the GDP in Guangdong province in 2011, and the total financial assets are valued at more than 13 trillion yuan ($2.04 trillion).

According to the province's 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-15) for the financial sector, Guangdong is expected to have total financial assets of more than 20 trillion yuan by 2015, while five to 10 local financial institutions are expected to be listed.