(Yicai Global) May 30 -- The market has reacted favorably to the new round of the country's financial opening policies and the financial institutions of many countries and regions have already stated an intent to develop and expand their local investment, China Banking Regulatory Commission Vice Chairman Wang Zhaoxing said today.

Several have also formally applied for market admission, he added, speaking at the 2019 Financial Street annual meeting in Beijing. 

China welcomes expressions of intent to invest in the country from financial organizations from all nations, the CBRC deputy told the gathering in a speech, adding the commission will continue to make good on its pledge to provide a level playing field and jointly optimize the regulatory environment.

"We will integrate [the results of] our study of mature foreign experience with China's actual situation to surmount the regulatory challenges brought by this opening," Wang stated, "and thus make up for any shortfalls in the administrative system to guarantee that regulation is appropriate for the level of openness to the outside."

The CBRC announced 12 more measures on May 1 to further open the banking and insurance sectors following last year's 15. The latest include removing the shareholding ceiling in joint stock banks, city commercial banks and other small and mid-sized commercial lenders for both domestic and foreign investors based on the principle of one-size-fits-all treatment.

The new standards will clearly raise the level of openness and internationalization of China's banking and insurance sectors, manifest the Chinese government's confidence in promoting and resolve to advance the high-quality development of the domestic financial sector and the real economy, Wang said.

The liberalization of China's financial sector will not only confer direct benefits on foreign financial institutions, he stressed, but also unite China with the international sector to resist financial crises and thereby make a major contribution to world economic stability.

Editors: Tang Shihua, Ben Armour