China’s biggest banks have lent 1.3 trillion yuan ($209.4 billion) to the country’s state-backed margin lender to halt a meltdown in Chinese shares, local media said on Friday, underlining the government’s determination to support stock prices.
Financial magazine Caijing cited unnamed sources as saying that 17 commercial Chinese banks had coughed up the cash for China Securities Finance Corp as of Monday, after China’s central bank said it wanted to extend funding to the firm.
China Merchants Bank Co was the biggest financier, lending 186 billion yuan to China Securities Finance, Caijing said.
China Securities Finance is the only institution that provides margin financing loan services to Chinese securities firms, and is seen as an important conduit for the government to counter stock market volatility.
