Regulator to promote development of OTC board

    CHINA’S securities regulator said Friday it would release measures to further promote the development of the New Third Board, the country’s most active over-the-counter (OTC) equity exchange, part of efforts to aid China’s small companies.

    The China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) said that it plans to categorize companies listed on the New Third Board into two levels, based on the maturity of their business models. It would also encourage brokerages to set up subsidiaries for OCT market-related businesses. However, the CSRC said the time was not ripe to lower the threshold for investors in the New Third Board and it also said that listing on the board should not be considered a step toward listing on one of the main boards.

    BOC unit launches first yuan ETF in Europe

    EUROPE’S first exchange-traded fund (ETF) denominated in yuan and based on the domestic Chinese share market launched Friday, Bank of China’s international division said in a statement.

    The ETF is sponsored by BOC International and started trading Friday on the China Europe International Exchange, a Frankfurt-based joint venture between Deutsche Boerse and two Chinese exchanges, BOC International said in the statement.

    CCB first bank to launch pension funds unit

    CHINA Construction Bank Corp. (CCB), the country’s second-biggest lender by assets, said Friday it had launched a pension funds management subsidiary, the first for a Chinese commercial bank.

    CCB Pension Management Co. has registered capital of 2.3 billion yuan (US$360.33 million), the bank said in a statement. CCB will own 85 percent of the new fund, while the National Council for Social Security Fund will hold the remaining stake.

    Former ICBC exec named president of Minsheng

    CHINA Minsheng Banking Corp., China’s largest private bank, has appointed a former vice president of Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) as president.

    In January, Minsheng said its president Mao Xiaofeng had resigned for personal reasons, after domestic media reports said he was being probed by the anti-corruption watchdog. Zheng Wanchun, formerly vice president of ICBC, has been named president of Minsheng, according to Minsheng’s filings with the Shanghai and Hong Kong stock exchanges. Zheng’s appointment is still pending approval by China’s banking regulator, the bank said.