China announces timetable to lift foreign ownership limits on financial firms

China has set a clear timetable for allowing full foreign ownership of financial service companies, the country's securities regulator announced Friday.

People leave the headquarters of the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) in Beijing, China, April 25, 2018. [File Photo: IC]

Foreign ownership limits on fund management firms will be lifted starting April 1 next year, the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) said in an online statement.

Shareholding caps on foreign investors currently faced by brokerages will be scrapped from December 1 next year, the statement said.

The restrictions on foreign ownership of futures companies will be lifted from January 1 next year, the CSRC said in a separate statement, adding that overseas entities can start to file applications.

In July, the country announced a move to end foreign ownership limits on brokerages, fund management firms as well as futures companies in 2020, a year earlier than originally planned as the country speeds up its financial opening-up.