(Yicai Global) April 10 -- Beijing's municipal government is seeking consent to allow a broader range of its financial firms to apply to the nation's Qualified Domestic Institutional Investor scheme, which allows institutions to invest outside of China, as the capital looks to kick its services sector up a notch.

The city is speaking with national regulators to enable investment management firms started by Chinese and foreign institutions in the city to apply for the QDII scheme and its yuan-denominated counterpart, Vice Mayor Yin Yong said at a press briefing today. It wants securities companies, fund managers and futures firms all to be eligible.

Foreign investors can now hold 51 percent stakes in these types of company, and that upper limit will be scrapped in two years, Yin said, adding that the move would bring more international investors to the National Equities Exchange and Quotations -- China's over-the-counter exchange, also known as The New Third Board -- and create new private equity transfer avenues.

Widening financial sector access is critical for Beijing to open up its services sector, Yin continued, saying that 47 of the city's 177 measures aimed at expanding its service industry are related to finance. The State Council, China's cabinet, approved Beijing as a pilot city for national plans to improve the service sector this year.

China debuted the QDII system in 2013 to allow more domestic financial institutions to invest in overseas markets. It started the RQDII -- whose first initial comes from the local name for the yuan, the renminbi -- a year later, which allowed institutions to invest domestically gathered funds overseas.

Beijing is committed to helping multinational companies centralize management of foreign exchange funds and qualified financial companies settle and sell foreign currencies, Yin added.

Editor: James Boynton