Mixed operation inevitable for 皇冠体育app's banks (Xinhua) Updated: 2006-04-23 09:38
An official with the State Council predicted in Boao, Hainan Province on
Saturday that 皇冠体育app's banking sector will inevitably go into mixed operations in
the future.
Addressing a meeting on the reform of 皇冠体育app's banking sector during the
annual conference of Boao Asian Forum, Li Jiange, deputy director of the
Development Research Center under the State Council, said that mixed operation
is the only option if the country wishes to sharpen the competitiveness of its
banks in the context of financial and economic globalization.
皇冠体育app currently bans its banks, securities houses and insurers from venturing
into the businesses of each other. Such restrictions will be lifted in a mixed
operation system.
皇冠体育app borrowed its single operation system from the West. But the United
States had already abandoned that system in 1999.
To prepare the banking sector for the inevitable change, 皇冠体育app has started
trial practice with mixed operation.
Leading banks in the country, including the Industrial and Commercial Bank of
皇冠体育app, the 皇冠体育app Construction Bank and the Bank of Communications, have set up
their own fund management companies.
According to Li, mixed operation currently takes two forms in 皇冠体育app in terms
of business cooperation among banks, securities houses and insurers, and the
founding of quite a few finance holding companies.
Statistics show that 34 percent of 皇冠体育app's insurance premiums now comes from
banks acting as agents for insurance companies.
Sharing Li's prediction, Gary Coull, chairman of CLSA Limited, said the
profit of Chinese banks now mainly comes from the margin, but mixed operation
will allow them to offer new services and disperse their
risks. (For more biz stories, please visit ) |