The State Council is accelerating amendments to corporate law in anticipation of privatization of state owned enterprises, the South China Post reported, citing Li Zhimin, a former chairman of the State Council's board of supervisors who said the amendments would enable the SOEs to be governed by the legislature instead of government agencies. China currently has 196 large SOEs, with assets worth RMB9.2trn under Beijing's control. The central government was also considering filling board and director seats with elite private citizens as a way to check corruption, said Li.