China's banking regulator urges enhanced anti-monopoly scrutiny in financial sector

BEIJING, Nov 11 (Reuters) - China should borrow the
play-book of foreign countries and step up anti-monopoly
scrutiny in the financial sector to protect the interests of
consumers, a senior official at the country's top banking
watchdog said on Wednesday.
The remarks by Liang Tao, vice chairman of the China Banking
and Insurance Regulatory Commission (CBIRC), came a day after
China published draft rules aimed at preventing monopolistic
behaviour by internet platforms, focused on e-commerce sites and
payment services at the likes of Alibaba Group 9988.HK .
They also come soon after a shock suspension last week of
the planned $37 billion share listing of Ant Group, an Alibaba
affiliate, not long after regulators warned the company its
lucrative online lending business faced tighter government
scrutiny.
"Regarding the problem of market monopoly in some areas, we
should learn from foreign experience, strengthen antimonopoly
scrutiny, and ensure fair competition and market order," said
Liang, speaking at a Beijing conference.
China will keep encouraging innovation in the financial
technology sector, but will take care to strike a balance
between financial development and financial risks brought about
by digitisation, Liang added.
"We'll pay close attention especially to risks including
cybersecurity, data security and market monopoly behaviour," he
said.
Liang also reiterated calls for banks not to outsource key
financial credentials such as risk management, internal
auditing, and even strategy planning to third-party institutions
when involved in business ties with big tech firms.
China's Financial Stability and Development Committee, a
cabinet-level body headed by Vice Premier Liu He, last month
flagged the need to improve mechanisms to ensure fair
competition and called for the strengthening of anti-monopoly
law enforcement.