HONG KONG - China took a bold step on Friday to allow foreign players to have greater ownership in its financial institutions, with the eventual goal of eliminating all investment restrictions for insurers, brokerages, fund managers and futures companies.
For its 247 trillion yuan ($37.3 trillion) banking sector and financial-asset managers, the new rules will lift the current caps on foreign holdings -- up to 20% for single investors and 25% in aggregate -- indefinitely, according to the announcement made in Beijing by Vice Finance Minister Zhu Guangyao.
