China’s central bank will strengthen oversight of the reserve funds that banks are required to deposit in an effort to enhance supervision of financial institutions and prevent risks, the People’s Bank of China said Thursday.

Banks are required to make full and timely payments of the deposits with the central bank. Those that delay payments will be punished, the PBOC said in a statement.

The move will help “ensure the unity of the deposit reserve management system and promote healthy operations of financial institutions,” the central bank said.

Several commercial banks and other lenders have been punished this year for reserve payment arrearages. In June, Dezhou Bank was fined 401,000 yuan ($58,000) for failing to make full payment on time, shortly after the Shanghai branch of CTBC Bank was fined 225,100 yuan for a similar flaw.

The reserve ratio for major commercial lenders stands at 14.5% following four reserve requirement cuts this year to support lending to the private sector.