ICBC is one of six banks to team up with the All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce (ACFIC) to drive micro-lending to small businesses in China.
On 30 July ACFIC released its annual “Assist the Micro Plan” (助微计划), which will seek to direct financial resources to wards micro and small-enterprises (MSE’s) in a bid to drive the “stabilisation of employment, the revitalisation of rural villages and the growth of tech boards (companies).”
ACFIC developed the Plan in collaboration six of China’s leading lenders, including the Agricultural Development Bank of China, ICBC, Ping An Bank, Bank of Beijing, Chongqing Rural Commercial Bank and Alibaba-backed MYbank.
The first plan was released last year in collaboration with MYBank, and saw the provision of over 870 billion yuan in “non-contact micro-loans” to support more than 20 million MSE’s in weathering the COVID-19 pandemic.
Figures from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS) indicate that China is currently host to over 44 million micro-and-small enterprises and over 95 million individual industrial and commercial registrants.
According to CASS these businesses support over 80% of China’s national employment.
