China Plans to Create Vast New Financial Regulator

China plans to create a national financial regulatory body that oversees all parts of the financial industry other than securities, absorbing the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission in the process, the State Council said Tuesday.

The new regulator, which has yet to be officially named, will take over the responsibilities for financial consumer protection and day-to-day supervision of financial holding companies from the People’s Bank of China (PBOC), as well as investor protection from the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC), according to a proposal offered at this year’s annual meeting of the National People’s Congress, the country’s top legislature.

As part of a proposed overhaul of the State Council, the move comes as Beijing has vowed to strengthen oversight on financial markets and improve coordination among regulators.

Meanwhile, the CSRC will take over responsibility for approving corporate bond issuances from the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), according to the proposal. Under the current regulatory regime, the CSRC, NDRC and PBOC each oversee different types of corporate bonds.

As of the end of September, China’s financial institutions had 413 trillion yuan ($60 trillion) in total assets, according to government data. Banking, insurance and securities institutions held 374 trillion yuan, 27 trillion yuan and 13 trillion yuan, respectively.

Contact reporter Zhang Ziyu (ziyuzhang@caixin.com) and editor Michael Bellart (michaelbellart@caixin.com)

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