Debt seller announces securities plans

Huarong Asset Management, one of four state-run firms that sell off bad debt belonging to China's banks, wants to move into the securities industry with a view to transforming itself into an investment bank. Ding Zhongchi, vice president of Huarong, told the FT that the company was seeking government backing for the move which could see it outlive its expected wind-down from next year. With the big four state banks' bad debts largely cleared, the future of the asset management firms remains unclear.