European Commission Vice President and New European Ambassador Meet with the Chamber’s Financial Services Working Groups
2018-09-17 | Beijing
On 17th September, newly arrived European Ambassador Nicolas Chapuis and European Commission Vice President Valdis Dombrovskis discussed the realities of recent opening in the financial services sector with the Chamber’s banking, insurance and consumer finance working group chairs.
While the members recognised and expressed their appreciation for the significant announcements have been made regarding the easing and removal of equity caps in banking and insurance, they did express their concerns over such issues as the delay in licenses as well as other barriers such as limits on asset growth, shareholding and capital requirements that are still well above international norms.
While the consumer finance industry is open, access to funding and the plethora of unlicensed companies in the market is a challenge. Mergers and acquisitions are unlikely as market prices for the more interesting targets are too high to attract buyers and investors. Cross-border services remain one area where European companies could play a niche role that would benefit the Chinese market. However, given the current restructuring of the relevant supervisory authorities there is concern that many of these opportunities may be delayed while positions are filled and policy direction for foreign companies in terms of actual practice is further clarified.
Vice President Dombrovskis acknowledged the concerns and shared with the group the progress on the Comprehensive Agreement on Investment and the financial services regulatory dialogue with China. Ambassador Chapuis stressed the importance of a positive and constructive dialogue with China and highlighted the recent progress made at the EU-China Summit as well.