PBOC broadens investors permitted into interbank bond market

The central bank has taken another step toward broadening the scope of investors in the interbank bond market, granting direct access to all bank wealth management products, housing provident funds, pension funds and charities. Caixin reports that experts say this will bring in huge amounts of extra capital to the market, where most of the country’s bonds – worth a combined RMB 35 tn as of January – were issued and traded. The move is also expected to make the wealth management industry more transparent because more institutions can now buy bonds directly instead of working through intermediaries.