The volume and value of fines issued by China’s banking regulator to misbehaving financial institutions hit a record high in the first half of 2018, as the central government tightens the screws on the sector.
A report from the Guangzhou Daily indicates that disparate branches of the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission (CBIRC) had issued 1662 fines to commercial banks and financial institutions since the start of 2018 as of 30 June.
10 were issued by CBIRC itself, 531 by banking regulation departments and 1121 by banking regulation sub-departments, to financial institutions including major state-owned banks, joint-stock banks and municipal commercial banks.
The total value of fines issued by the banking regulator was in excess of 1 billion yuan (approx. USD$149.17 million) including 12 fines of over 10 million yuan, five fines of over 50 million yuan, and one fine of 461 million yuan.
The infractions that most commonly incurred penalties included lending operations in breach of regulations, breaches of prudent operating principles, and breaches in relation to notes operations.
CBIRC head Guo Shuqing (郭树清) said at the recently held Lujiazui Forum in Shanghai that the regulator would “promptly undertake comprehensive rectification of market malfeasance, and vigorously contain the trend of capital fleeing from the real to the empty in the banking and insurance sectors.”
