China further opens up insurance, banking sectors to foreign investors

The State Council announced the revision of regulations on foreign banks and insurers on Oct 15. China relaxed market access rules for foreign insurance companies, such as removing requirements that companies that apply to establish foreign-invested insurers in China have a track record in the business of over 30 years and have a representative office in the country longer than two years.

The government also liberalized requirements on stakeholders that plan to set up foreign-invested banks in China and requirements on foreign banks that plan branches in the country.

Other revisions include allowing foreign banks to simultaneously set up branches, as well as wholly foreign-owned banks — or branches and Sino-foreign joint venture banks — in China. Also allowed is expanding the business scope of foreign banks by lowering their branches' threshold of fixed-term renminbi deposits to 500,000 yuan from 1 million (to $70,610 from $141,220) per deposit.