(Yicai Global) Jan. 22 -- Executives from China's central financial system have made their way into local departments by taking on roles as vice mayors in Beijing, Shanghai and Tianjin as the country looks to take a strong stance on financial regulation.

Yin Yong, former deputy governor of the People's Bank of China, became vice mayor of the Chinese capital on Jan. 19 and Kang Yi, former deputy governor of Agricultural Bank of China Ltd., took on the equivalent role in Tianjin the same day. Wu Qing, former chairman of the Shanghai Stock Exchange, became Shanghai's vice mayor on Jan. 16.

China brought in the New Year with a series of rules that could make it tougher for smaller firms to borrow money. Its new policies aim to scrutinize banks' shareholders, corporate governance and risk control systems.

Yin has made outstanding contributions to international finance and has unique insights on the prevention of financial risk and supervision, Beijing Daily cited Yin's predecessor Lu Yan as saying. Yin and his Tianjin equivalent Kang have no prior political experience.

Shanghai's new vice mayor Wu began serving as the Party secretary for the city's Hongkou District in December 2010 and sought to develop the area into a local finance hub. The number of financial institutions based in Hongkou increased from just 78 before 2011 to over 1,000 at the end of 2015. He also served as a risk director under the China Securities Regulatory Commission and earned his nickname, the 'broker butcher,' for his tough stance on violators. During his tenure, he tackled 31 rule-breaking securities firms.