China tightens rules on banks' online deposit products; IBK to open Myanmar unit

TOP NEWS IN BANKING & FINANCIAL SERVICES

* The China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission and the People's Bank of China will issue new regulations that will tighten rules for commercial banks' online deposit products, Shanghai Daily reported, citing the regulators.

* South Korea-based Industrial Bank of Korea will launch IBK Bank Myanmar as early as January, The Korea Herald reported. The lender received approval from the Myanmar central bank to open a maximum of 10 branches in the country.

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BANKING

* South Korea's KB Kookmin Bank and Shinhan Bank Co. Ltd. will resume offering household credit loans and loan products for households and salaried workers, respectively, on Jan. 4, The Korea Times reported. KakaoBank of Korea Corp. also began offering loan products for salaried workers Jan. 1.

* Land Bank of the Philippines President and CEO Cecilia Borromeo said the lender expects to pick up a controlling stake in the Philippines-based bond market platform Philippine Dealing System Holdings Corp. in 2021, Philippine Daily Inquirer reported.

* Aizid Razzaq Gill succeeded Tahir Hassan Qureshi as the CEO of Pakistan-based Allied Bank Ltd., effective Jan. 1. Qureshi retired after completion of his term Dec. 31, 2020.

FINANCIAL SERVICES

* Calvin Tai succeeded Charles Li as interim CEO of Hong Kong Exchanges & Clearing Ltd., effective Jan. 1. He also became an ex-officio member of the listing committee of the main board and GEM of the Hong Kong bourse.

* Japan's Shinkin Central Bank will form a consortium of 11 companies and institutions to support small businesses facing continuity challenges by January-end, The Nikkei reported. The consortium will provide services including business succession planning service, staffing and tax services.

POLICY AND REGULATION

* Song Jianji, former deputy head of the former China Banking Regulatory Commission's Inner Mongolian branch, stood trial in the autonomous region's capital Hohhot for taking bribes worth 229 million yuan, Caixin reported.

* The Supreme People's Procuratorate of China decided to arrest Guo Jizhuang, former director of China Construction Bank Corp.'s Qinghai provincial branch for allegedly taking bribes, Caijing reported.

* Yoon Suk-heun, chief of South Korea's Financial Supervisory Service, said the regulator will tighten rules on private equity funds and all other institutions that design and sell highly structured financial products to reinforce consumer protection, The Korea Times reported.

* Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas allowed branches of foreign banks established in the Philippines prior to 2014 to lend more to companies that have hit their loan limits, Philippine Daily Inquirer reported.

* The Monetary Authority of Singapore said it is aware that police reports have been filed against CoAssets Ltd. and it will look into whether the company's licensed unit, CA Funding, breached regulations, The Business Times reported. This came after reports that the company had transferred US$30 million of its borrowings to debt recovery company Sunfits and that it is nonoperational and insolvent.

* The Comptroller and Auditor General of India wrote to the country's finance ministry and its Department of Financial Services to inquire about the rationale for distribution of capital to public sector banks, among other information, as part of its performance audit of the government's recapitalization of the lenders, Press Trust of India reported citing sources.

* The Reserve Bank of India devised a composite Digital Payments Index, consisting of five broad parameters to measure the penetration of digital payments in the country over different time periods.

INDUSTRY NEWS

* Thailand's household debt hit an 18-year high of 86.6% of the country's GDP in the third quarter of 2020, Post Today reported, citing Kasikorn Research Center. The household debt level is expected to exceed 90% in the final quarter.

MARKET SNAPSHOT

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Eden Estopace, Sally Wang, Sarun Saelee, Cathy Hwang, Emi White and Aditya Suharmoko contributed to this report.

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