What’s new: China’s top securities regulator has begun reviewing an application (link in Chinese) filed by a Standard Chartered PLC subsidiary to set up a Chinese mainland securities firm, according to information posted on the website of the China Securities Regulatory Commission.
The firm will be wholly owned by the British banking giant, a Standard Chartered spokesperson told Caixin.
The background: China is steadily moving forward with steps to open up its financial market. In April 2020, it scrapped the foreign ownership limit (link in Chinese) on securities firms.
Currently, the country has given the green light to at least eight foreign institutions to either set up foreign-controlled securities firms or take controlling stakes in existing securities joint ventures. They include some long-standing players in China’s financial industry, such as JPMorgan Chase & Co., Goldman Sachs Group Inc., UBS Group AG, Japan’s Daiwa Securities Group Inc. and Singapore’s DBS Bank Ltd.
Related: In Depth: Progress and Pitfalls for Foreign Investors in China’s Capital Markets
Contact reporter Tang Ziyi (ziyitang@caixin.com) and editor Joshua Dummer (joshuadummer@caixin.com)
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