China Weighs Letting Big Banks Broker Deals on Wall Street Threat
- Beijing may give permits to large banks as soon as this year
- Move comes as China opens up capital markets to Wall Street
China is getting ready to allow its largest commercial banks to enter into investment banking and bond and stock deal-making as soon as this year, paving the way for them to take on Wall Street rivals as competition heats up in the nation’s $21 trillion capital market.
Regulators are discussing plans to grant such licenses initially to some of the nation’s biggest lenders, including Industrial & Commercial Bank of China Ltd. and China Construction Bank Corp., on a pilot basis, said people familiar with the deliberations who asked not to be identified since the matter is private. Policy makers are also mulling amending the commercial banking law to remove the legal hurdle that has prevented lenders from diversifying into securities and futures for decades, said the people.