Chinese banks come of age to help finance M&A spree

Chinese banks are increasing their clout in financing international mergers and acquisitions. The nation's lenders were mandated lead arrangers on $19.9 billion of global syndicated loans for M&A this year, raising their share of that market to 4.4 percent from 0.9 percent in 2015, data compiled by Bloomberg showed.

While Bank of China Ltd led, second-tier lenders have increasingly joined the fray. China CITIC Bank International Ltd helped helm a $12.7 billion loan in June backing China National Chemical Corp's purchase of Syngenta AG. China Merchants Bank Co led a $3 billion loan in July for the privatization of formerly New York-listed Qihoo 360 Technology Co, Bloomberg data showed.

With investment opportunities sparse amid the country's weakest economic expansion in a quarter century, Chinese banks are focusing more on cross-border lending.