International: Reforming China's Financial Services Sector
Last Updated: August 14, 2008
Overview:
China ’s World Trade Organization (WTO) accession commitments for financial services demonstrated a reluctance to open this sector fully to foreign competition. China’s hesitation to open its securities markets fully to foreign investment has stymied the interest of foreign securities firms and has slowed the pace of reforms in China’s capital markets.
Position:
SIFMA supports open, fair and transparent markets and strongly urges China to improve and accelerate its financial sector reform. Specifically, China should put in place a precise and transparent roadmap that would provide foreign securities firms with the right to own 100 percent of a People’s Republic of China (PRC) financial services firm and the ability to engage in a full range of securities activities.
Status:
On September 5, the House approved a resolution calling on China to remove barriers to U.S. financial services firms doing business in China by a vote of 401-4. SIFMA testified before the House Financial Services Committee on the issue on June 6, 2007.
Updates:
- SIFMA Joins 29 Business Groups in Letter to President on US-China - July 21, 2008
- Statement of Michael Decker Senior Managing Director, Research and Public Policy, before the House Committee on Financial Services “U.S. INTERESTS IN REFORM OF CHINA’S FINANCIAL SERVICES SECTOR” - June 6, 2007
- SIFMA signs joint letter to House Ways and Means Committee Leaders - January 7, 2008.
- A copy of Secretary Henry M. Paulson's October 23 speech at the 2007 George Bush China-U.S. Relations Conference may be found at: http://www.ustreas.gov/press/releases/hp633.htm
- Please also note the Treasury Department's website has been updated to include a section on the SED http://www.treas.gov/initiatives/us-china/
- Statement of Michael Decker, Senior Managing Director, Research and Public Policy, Before the Committee on Financial Services US House of Representatives: Hearing on U.S. Interests in Reform of China’s Financial Services Sector - June 6, 2007
- Referenced Discussion Paper: Promoting Fair And Transparent Regulation
