Regulation

China is bringing its banking and insurance watchdogs under one roof, and experts say the People’s Bank of China (PBoC) is the real winner, with an even broader mandate.

In May 1989, the Sydney news magazine ‘The Bulletin’ published a cover story of characteristic Australian bluntness: ‘Why the banks are bastards.’

The opening up of the Chinese financial sector to majority foreign ownership is an important and strategic move, but the guidelines curtailing banking sector liberalization make it look like one step forward, two steps back.

Japan

Competitors used to dismiss CLSA as a one-trick pony, but with it now taking advantage of the heft of parent Citic’s balance sheet, can CEO Jonathan Slone turn it into a thundering herd?

The island’s financial sector is struggling to meet the needs of the economy, hampered by over-regulation. As it slowly withers, will lawmakers finally address the need for change?