Year in Review: Regulation Looms Large Over China’s Financial Firms

In 2021, regulators’ efforts to defuse financial risks have become more obvious. The Chinese economy’s rapid recovery from the impact of Covid-19 gave the government more breathing room to tackle some long-standing issues, from internet giants’ highly leveraged fintech businesses to the debt risks of once freewheeling financial institutions.

Financial authorities took a series of actions to close loopholes in fintech regulations, aiming to treat firms such as Ant Group Co. Ltd. like traditional financial institutions. They also proceeded to restructure “too-big-to-fail” firms like China Huarong Asset Management Co. Ltd.