China on Thursday opened wider doors to its $21 trillion bond market, granting foreign investors full access to repurchase transactions in a move regulators said will align the country more closely with global standards and deepen liquidity, reports Caixin. In a joint notice, the People’s Bank of China, the China Securities Regulatory Commission, and the State Administration of Foreign Exchange said all qualified foreign institutions—including those trading through the Bond Connect link—may now take part in repos, a key short-term financing tool in global debt markets.
The move underscores Beijing’s push to internationalize its bond market at a time when policymakers are keen to attract stable long-term capital and bolster the appeal of the yuan.
As of the end of August, 1,170 foreign institutions from 80 countries and regions held roughly RMB 4 trillion ($550 billion) worth of Chinese bonds. They include central banks, sovereign wealth funds, commercial lenders, insurers, and asset managers.