China will rein in its shadow banking system by requiring banks to provide greater disclosure about their off-balance sheet activities, according to people briefed on the new rules.
The Chinese shadow banking system – credit flows beyond traditional bank loans – has quadrupled in size since 2008 to about Rmb20tn ($3.2tn), 40 per cent of economic output. These flows were crucial in reviving the country’s growth last year. But analysts and rating agencies have warned that they pose an increasingly serious risk to Chinese economic stability.
There is also discussion about whether to set a cap on the number of off-balance sheet investment products banks can issue as a percentage of assets.