The International Finance Corporation, the private sector arm of the World Bank, announced it plans to double its investment in China to about US$500 million within two years, the Financial Times reported.
The company also aims to spend US$700 million on stakes in and loans to Asian companies this year, a 20% rise on 2003.
The IFC said it had been asked by the Chinese government to help broaden and deepen the country's financial sector and that State-owned companies in the industrial northeast would be a focus.
The IFC helps companies in developing countries by purchasing shares and providing loans and financial advice and has about US$4 billion invested in Asia.