China’s Crackdown Will Shake Up World’s Largest Fintech Market
- China’s consumer loans climbed to a record $7.6 trillion
- Over 7,000 micro lenders face shakeup amid tougher new rules
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In a four-year campaign to root out risks to China’s financial system, regulators have set upon their biggest target yet: the world’s largest financial technology sector.
All three financial watchdogs have made it their primary goal this year to curb the “reckless” push of technology firms into finance, taking aim at a sector where loose oversight fueled breakneck growth for companies such as Ant Group Co. and Tencent Holdings Ltd.’s Wechat Pay. They have the green-light from President Xi Jinping, who in November called on regulators to “dare to” master their supervisory role.