Large-scale agricultural operators receive key support from the China Banking Regulatory Commission
In line with the requirements of the General Office of the State Council's "Several Opinions on Financial Services for the Development of “Agriculture, Rural Areas and Farmers”," the China Banking Regulatory Commission recently issued two consecutive guiding opinions, "Financial Support for Large-Scale Agricultural Production and Intensive Operation" and "Advancing Basic Financial Services “to Every Village”," requiring that large-scale agricultural operators be made a priority for financial support, that the extension of basic financial services to administrative villages be further promoted, and that basic financial services “reach every village” in administrative villages generally be achieved within 3 to 5 years.
At present, China's agriculture has entered a new stage of accelerated transition from traditional decentralized household operation to a new type of operating system combining intensive, specialized, organized and socialized operation. Therefore, the CBRC requires that, on the basis of continuing to serve farming households well, joint-household operations, specialized large households, family farms, farmers' cooperatives and other large-scale agricultural operators that meet the requirements of scale, specialization and standardization be made the focus of support. The key service areas are concentrated in three aspects: industrial projects, agricultural infrastructure and the circulation of agricultural products, specifically including agricultural science and technology, modern seed industry, agricultural machinery and equipment manufacturing, farmland consolidation, farmland water conservancy, and wholesale market construction.
The Opinions point out that all types of rural financial institutions should form a mechanism of division of labor and cooperation. The Agricultural Development Bank of China should strengthen its policy-based financial service functions and increase medium- and long-term credit support for agricultural development and rural infrastructure construction; rural credit cooperatives should further strengthen their capacity to serve agriculture and better play their role as the main force in serving agriculture; and village and township banks should adhere to specialized operation and differentiated services, strengthening financial services for rural communities and small and micro enterprises.
The CBRC also proposed that the channel foundation for “reaching every village” be consolidated by extending services through township branches, building simple and convenient outlets, and installing electronic machines. It also proposed strengthening the application of technology, making full use of internet finance technology, cooperating with network communication operators, and using fixed-line telephones, the internet and mobile communication networks to break through the “last kilometer” constraint that manpower and outlets cannot reach.
According to a relevant person in charge at the CBRC, risk control for agriculture-related loans is currently sound, and as of the end of June, the non-performing loan ratio of agriculture-related loans of banking financial institutions was 2.3%.