(Yicai) Jan. 25 -- China’s commercial banks disposed of CNY3 trillion (USD420 billion) in non-performing loans last year, according to the financial regulator.

The balance of NPLs was CNY3.95 trillion (USD552 billion) at the end of 2023, with an bad loan ratio of 1.62 percent, up CNY149.5 billion (USD21 billion) from early last year, data from the National Administration of Financial Regulation showed today.

Under pressure from regulators, banks and financial institutions have been making greater efforts to dispose of dud loans in recent years, NAFR spokesperson Liu Zhiqing said at a press conference.

About CNY18 trillion (USD2.52 trillion) of NPLs have been disposed of since 2017, according to NAFR data.

“The next step for the NAFR is to continue to guide banks and financial institutions to extend more credit and improve the credit loan structure, while focusing on fintech, green finance, inclusive finance, pension finance, and digital finance,” Liu noted.

China’s banking industry had CNY417.3 trillion (USD58.4 trillion) of assets as of the end of last year, up 9.9 percent from a year earlier, while new yuan loans stood at CNY22.75 trillion, up CNY1.31 trillion.

The industry had CNY383.1 trillion of debt, a 10.1 percent increase, and new yuan deposits fell CNY510.1 billion to CNY25.74 trillion.

Commercial banks reported CNY2.38 trillion in net profit for last year, up 3.2 percent from the previous year.

Looking ahead, the nation’s strong economic fundamentals will not change, Liu said, as new urbanization and further green transition will boost development of the financial industry. The banking sector is also expected to maintain steady growth, Liu added.

Editor: Tom Litting