Commenting on China opening its finance sector to more foreign ownership, Dr Daniele Bianchi, Warwick Business School's Assistant Professor of Finance, said: "This is a step in the right direction to boost China's global position as a financial hub. Indeed, although representing the second largest economy and a global superpower, Chinese financial markets are of moderate size and are characterised by massive state intervention which, so far at least, has prevented foreign asset managers to have full control of their own ventures.
"This is a long-anticipated and much overdue step that will grant greater access to overseas investors as Beijing faces increasing pressure, especially from Western governments, to ease investment barriers that restrict overseas companies’ operations in its markets.
"Opening such a big market would not only benefit foreign investors but also the Chinese government, which is currently trying to undertake broad economic reforms by internationalising the yuan currency and seeking technical know-how through the pursuit of inbound and outbound investments.
"Now the real question is how the announced opening will be implemented, in what shape and timeline. So far, Chinese authorities have been reluctant to give foreign investors full access to its financial sector, but as foreign investment into Asia’s economic powerhouse slows there might be no other choice for the government than to quicken the pace to achieve a level economic playing field."