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We are looking for individuals with extraordinary intellectual capability and curiosity, ability to rapidly learn and apply new concepts, as well as self-motivation and responsibility to join us. We seek diversified educational backgrounds and encourage applicants from all academic disciplines. About Us In fulfilling the responsibilities of foreign reserve management, we put the interests of the nation and the people at the very first. Aiming at long-term preservation and value adding for our reserve assets, we embrace prudential, professional and active investment management, with strategic and tactical asset allocation and diversification over a long-term investment horizon. With headquarter in Beijing and offices in overseas financial centers, we carry out around-the-clock asset management, under an efficient and coherent decision-making / risk control framework. With a young, qualified and motivated team from diversified backgrounds, we value a SAFE culture of ethics and integrity, a constant pursuit of knowledge and truth, and a team spirit of interaction and liveliness. As we value people as the most important asset, we offer competitive incentives and training packages for our team. Vacancies We have the following job vacancies, based in Beijing headquarters and overseas offices: general affairs, asset allocation, investment management, external managers, risk management, compliance and internal audit, legal affairs, operations, information technology and human resources. Please refer to the attached vacancy list for details. General Requirements ·Bachelor degree or above from world renowned universities. ·Relevant working experience specific to the vacancy. ·Good command of both Chinese and English as working language. ·Computer proficiency. ·Other criteria specific to the vacancy. Application Procedures ·Please visit http://safe.chinahr.com to submit your CV and cover letter. To facilitate the screening, we ONLY accept the application through our website. ·Application deadline: ·Short-listed applicants will be invited to interview after documentation screening. ·New recruits will be required to sign employment contracts with probation in accordance with Chinese and local regulations. Contacts Tel: 86-10-66218899-1133/3073(ext.) (8:00-17:00 Beijing Time) Fax: 86-10-66213319 Email: HR@mail.rmd-safe.gov.cn (recommended) Apply FILE: Job Openings of Recruitment Program 2011 2010-10-25/en/2010/1025/960.html
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Recently there has been media coverage indicating that China may suffer huge losses from its investments in bonds issued by the U.S.-based Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and the losses may amount to 450 billion U.S. dollars. An interview was conducted on relevant issues by officials of the SAFE. Q: There has been media coverage that China may suffer great losses from its investments in bonds issued by the U.S.-based Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and the amount may reach up to USD450 billion. Is this true? If so, what is the actual amount? A: The white paper concerning the reform of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac soon to be issued by the U.S. Treasury Department has aroused widespread concern that China may suffer losses in its foreign exchange reserves. There has been media coverage indicating that the lossesmay amount to 450 billion U.S. dollars. These reports are utterly groundless. Up to now there have been smooth capital repayments with interest from Chinas bond investments in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac by capitalizing on the foreign exchange reserves. No losses have been incurred. Based on the relevant indices that are widely used by the market, during the three years from 2008 to 2010, Chinas annual average rate of return on its bond investments in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac hovered around 6%. The country has never allocated its foreign exchange reserves for stock investment in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. So the decline in the stock price and the delisting of the stocks of the two companies have no effect on Chinas foreign exchange reserves. We conscientiously manage our reserve assets and invest responsibly in the international market. Security is our top priority for any investment with our foreign exchange reserves. We have taken effective measures to guard against any possible risks, and potential risks have been defused risks defused effectively. The SAFE will continue to operate the foreign exchange reserves in compliance with the established principles and will take active steps to implement prudent investment strategies so as to ensure the security of our reserve assets and to achieve reasonable returns on our investments. 2011-02-11/en/2011/0211/983.html
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A meeting was recently held by the SAFE to review the investment quotas for qualified institutional investors. Total quotas of USD400 million were allocated to four qualified foreign institutional investors (QFIIs), including Aviva Investors Global Services Ltd., Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd., Schroder Investment Management Ltd., and PineBridge Investments LLC, and total quotas of USD1.585 billion were granted to three qualified domestic institutional investors (QDIIs), including Guosen Securities Co., Ltd., American International Assurance Company, Ltd., and Lion Fund Management Co., Ltd. As of April 29, 2011, the SAFE had approved investment quotas of USD20.690 billion to 103 QFIIs and investment quotas of USD72.646 billion to 92 QDIIs. Specifically, during the period from January to April 2011, investment quotas of USD970 million were allocated to 13 QFIIs, and quotas of USD2.985 billion were allocated to 8 QDIIs. Based on the changes and development in Chinas balance of payments, the SAFE will continue to examine and approve investment quotas for qualified institutional investors in a prudent and orderly manner. 2011-04-29/en/2011/0429/993.html
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I. Q: What is domestic and foreign currency exchange franchise business to individuals? A: The domestic and foreign currency exchange franchise business to individuals in the expanded pilot implementation refers to two-way currency exchange services (foreign currencies to RMB and vice versa) for domestic/overseas individuals in the localities of the pilot implementation, which are provided by domestic non-financial enterprises after approval of the SAFE. Internationally, a multi-level service system has been put in place for the provision of domestic and foreign currency exchange franchise business to individuals to meet the needs of diversified groups and the set up special client services composed of many levels. The providers of the domestic and foreign currency franchise exchange business to individuals generally include: bank outlets, foreign currency exchange franchise entities, and foreign currency exchange agencies. By nature, the Chinese institutions engaging in the pilot implementation of domestic and foreign currency exchange franchise business to individuals fall into the category of foreign currency exchange franchise entities, which are similar to the exchange shops in foreign countries. II. Q: What is the reason for the expanded pilot implementation? A: The provision of authority to general enterprises (other than banks) to deal in domestic and foreign currency exchange businesses to individuals is an important measure to improve currency exchange services for individuals, to diversify foreign exchange service providers, as well as to fulfill the requirements of the Regulations of the People's Republic of China on Foreign Exchange Administration. On August 20, 2008, the SAFE granted approval to Beijing and Shanghai for pilot implementation of domestic and foreign currency exchange business to individuals, with each city being allowed to select one franchise institution for implementation. The implementation has achieved the expected results and has received a positive response from the public. A number of regions and institutions have applied for pilot implementation of domestic and foreign currency exchange business to individuals. The SAFE recently decided to incorporate 13 provinces, municipalities, and autonomous regions (including Beijing and Shanghai) and 4 cities specifically designated in the state plan into the pilot implementation of foreign exchange business to individuals, to increase the number of pilot institutions, to permit cross-regional chain operations, to streamline relevant procedures, and to carry out uniform supervision over the pilot implementation. Among the aforesaid regions, there are regions with a robust foreign-related economy and a vast amount of frequent commercial contacts, cities at the borders/ports or tourist hubs, and regions entitled to preferential policies, all of which have a certain amount of currency exchange needs. The expansion of the pilot implementation of domestic and foreign currency exchange business to individuals will supplement the inadequacy of the existing services. With the establishment of a service network integrating the strength of various institutions banks, franchise operations institutions, and foreign currency exchange agencies the SAFE will be able to increase its capacity to provide diversified services to clients, thus better fulfilling market demands. III. Q: What are the qualifications for applying for domestic and foreign currency exchange business to individuals? What are the procedures for approval? A: First, individuals are not allowed to apply for such business. Qualified applicants must be general commercial enterprises with independent legal-person authority (Chinese-funded or foreign-funded) located within the territory of China. The applicants should have registered capital of not less than RMB 1 million (for foreign-funded enterprises, the amount should be the foreign exchange equivalent of RMB 1 million), and should have engaged in foreign currency exchange for more than 6 months. Second, the applicants should have a certain number of in-house practitioners with good knowledge of the foreign currency exchange business and foreign exchange administration policies. Third, the applicants should have adequate venues, systems, facilities, and security for carrying out the business, particularly the hardware/software compatible with the uniform national information system for the administration of individual exchange settlement and sales. Enterprises with the above qualifications can submit applications to the branches of the SAFE (foreign exchange administration departments, hereinafter referred to as SAFE branches) located at their registered domicile. The SAFE branches shall, after receipt of the application materials, examine the qualifications of the applicants with respect to their handling of domestic and foreign currency exchange business to individuals. The application materials of the qualifying applicants shall be submitted to the SAFE for approval. The SAFE shall assess the level of local demand for domestic and foreign currency exchange to individuals, the risk-control ability of the applicant, and other objective conditions, in order to determine the timetable for granting approval and making appropriate adjustments in the number of franchise institutions. IV. Q: What are the specific requirements for the expansion of the pilot implementation? A: By drawing on the experience from the earlier pilot implementation and specifying the requirements for supervision of the institutions operating the franchises, the SAFE has worked out a set of nationally uniform and normative measures for an expanded pilot implementation in compliance with the regulations and in consideration of operational convenience. The requirements for the expanded pilot implementation mainly include: a) The operations institutions shall handle the currency exchange business via the information system for the administration of individual settlement and sales of foreign exchange and shall incorporate the amount of each clients currency exchange into the annual aggregate quota control for the individual settlement and sales of foreign exchange; b) To underscore the distinct feature (transactions in small amounts) of the currency exchange business to individuals, the cumulative amount of currency exchanged by the franchise operations institutions shall not exceed USD 5,000 on one day for a single client; c) All the operations activities of the franchise institutions shall be conducted via their accounts under the foreign exchange excess reserves and limitations shall be imposed on the foreign exchange excess reserves; d) The operations institutions shall, on a monthly basis, issue to the SAFE branches statements related to their currency exchange and shall fulfill their statistical and reporting responsibilities regarding the balance of payments, anti-money-laundering, etc; e) The SAFE shall comply with the principle of achieving an efficient geographic distribution of franchise institutions to meet market demands and encourage the development of chain operations by specifying the timetable for the granting of approval and by flexibly adjusting the number of franchise institutions for the orderly promotion of the pilot implementation. V. Q: What are the distinctive characteristics of the franchise operations institutions in comparison with bank outlets and foreign currency exchange agencies? A: In 2008 Chinas domestic and foreign currency exchange business (also known as exchange settlement and sales) to individuals amounted to approximately USD 170 billion, of which currencies exchanged by overseas individuals reached USD 24 billion. The market has revealed the great potential as well as the diversified needs of customers. The franchise operations institutions, bank outlets, and foreign currency exchange agencies are natural competitors and also complement one another in terms of their business. As compared to bank outlets and foreign currency exchange agencies, franchise operations institutions have their own distinctive characteristics: a) Presently about 90% of foreign currency exchange agencies serve as auxiliary facilities at foreign-related hotels catering to the exchange needs of hotel guests. As far as bank outlets are concerned, the majority of bank outlets are positioned to provide B2B services to customers, and most bank outlets are generally in areas of concentrated residents and public work. Only a few bank outlets are located in areas where there are few residents, such as airports, hotels, scenic spots, etc. In contrast, franchise operations institutions can install a distribution of outlets to meet changing market demands; b) Bank outlets are normally restricted to fixed working hours; some are even closed during holidays. Foreign currency exchange agencies are usually limited in terms of the geographic scope of their services. In contrast, franchise operations institutions are allowed to extend their business hours at any time based on market demands and at some airports can operate 24/7. c) Franchise operations institutions, as compared to foreign currency exchange agencies, are capable of handling two-way exchange and discretionary setting of prices. The strong expertise of the franchise institutions enables service staffers to identify bank notes of all major countries in a timely manner, to keep pace with the latest anti-counterfeiting techniques, and to interact with customers with sound language skills. VI. Q: Some border provinces such as Guangxi, Yunnan, and Xinjiang have been incorporated into the expanded pilot implementation. Can the settlement of border trade enjoy the services provided by the pilot implementation? A: The main purpose of the expansion is to facilitate operation of currency exchange to individuals, especially to satisfy the currency exchange needs of individuals in areas with frequent entries and exits. That also underscores a feature of the business, i.e., small transactions and operational convenience. The SAFE has incorporated some border provinces into the expanded pilot implementation and encourages franchise operations institutions located in border/port cities to provide currency exchange services for the currencies of the surrounding countries and regions. In the case that a currency cannot be exchanged via a deposit bank, the franchise operations institutions are allowed to carry out the exchange through other channels. This will facilitate legal operations of the local currency exchange business to individuals, and hence will help check illegal exchange transactions at their source. Nonetheless, such practices may not completely satisfy the needs for border trade settlement, which should mainly be conducted via banks. 2009-12-23/en/2009/1223/911.html
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The State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE) recently issued the Circular of the SAFE on Relevant Issues Concerning the Management of Domestic Foreign Exchange Accounts of Overseas Institutions (hereinafter referred to as the Circular). A person-in-charge of the SAFE was interviewed on the relevant contents of the Circular. Q: What are the purposes and significance of issuing the Circular? A: In order to cope with the global financial crisis, the CPC Central Committee and the State Council have reiterated that efforts shall be strengthened to support economic development through financing, and the role of financing to bolster economic growth and to foster structural adjustments shall be given better play by implementing various measures. Emphasis has also been placed on deepening financial reform, strengthening risk prevention, and effectively maintaining financial security and stability. The issuance of this Circular is indicative of the efforts of the SAFE to fulfill the above requirements of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council. On the one hand, the Circular allows all domestic banks to open foreign exchange accounts for overseas institutions under the premise of prudent operations, and it streamlines the procedures for the examination and verification of documentary evidence for the account opening and overseas fund transfers by overseas institutions. These efforts are conducive for banks to broaden the scope of intermediary businesses and to facilitate fund management of go-globalenterprises so as to safeguard fund security, and consequently will enhance the capacity of banks and enterprises to cope with the global financial crisis. On the other hand, the Circular standardizes the identification mark of the foreign exchange accounts of overseas institutions as well as the rules on the declaration of balance of payments statistics, and clarifies that the cross-border transaction principle shall be applied to the examination of the authenticity of fund receipts and payments from/to domestic parties. Furthermore, the funds in the domestic foreign exchange accounts of overseas institutions shall be incorporated into the banks external debt management. Thus a firewall between the accounts of domestic institutions and the account of overseas institutions is established to prevent illegal inflows and outflows of funds via the domestic foreign exchange accounts of overseas institutions. Q: What is the main content of the Circular? A: The Circular allows qualified Chinese-funded banks and foreign-funded banks to open foreign exchange accounts and to provide financial services for overseas institutions after examining and verifying the authenticity and legitimacy of the opening of the domestic foreign exchange accounts by overseas institutions. However, the opening of special foreign exchange accounts by foreign investors and foreign exchange accounts of qualified overseas institutional investors etc. shall be subject to approval by the Foreign Exchange Administrations according to the regulations. The Circular also requires that domestic banks make identifying marks on the domestic foreign exchange accounts of overseas institutions and incorporate these accounts into relevant information system for uniform management. The receipts and payments from/to domestic institutions (individuals) by the said accounts shall be subject to cross-border transaction administration. Domestic banks must examine and verify valid commercial documents and vouchers as required and declare the balance of payments statistics according to the relevant regulations. The account funds are categorized as non-resident deposits, and accordingly shall be incorporated into the short-term external debt balance quota of the opening banks. Cash withdrawals from the accounts and foreign exchange settlements in a direct or disguised manner are prohibited unless approved by the Foreign Exchange Administrations. Domestic banks shall abide by the anti-money laundering regulations, such as the know your customer principle, the large-sum and suspicious transaction reporting system, and so forth. The Circular is not applicable to the opening and use of offshore foreign exchange accounts at offshore banking departments of domestic banks that have obtained offshore banking business qualifications in accordance with the law, and is also not applicable to the opening and use of foreign exchange accounts within China by overseas individuals. Q: What does the Circular specify for foreign exchange accounts opened at domestic banks by banks registered overseas? A: Banks registered overseas are identified as overseas institutions in the Circular, and all provisions in the Circular are applicable to the foreign exchange accounts opened by such banks at domestic banks. Such provisions include real-name accounts, affixing the NRA identification, free fund transfers from abroad, incorporating the funds in such foreign exchange accounts into the short-term external debt balance quota of the domestic opening banks, prohibiting cash deposits and withdrawals and prohibiting foreign exchange settlement, and so forth. Since the majority of the accounts opened by such banks at domestic banks are foreign exchange accounts of inter-bank deposits, which are relatively small in terms of their total amount, only involve overseas transfers, and are already covered in the balance of payments statistics, the foreign exchange accounts opened by these banks at domestic banks are not required to be incorporated into the foreign exchange account management information system, and are not subject to registration of the basic information, application of the special institutional code, and so forth. Q: What does the Circular specify in terms of monitoring and supervising the adoption of uniform identification of the domestic foreign exchange accounts of overseas institutions and in terms of submission of the information and so forth? A: In order to strengthen the monitoring and supervision over foreign exchange fund flows, to facilitate the handling of statistics and business, as well as to provide differentiation from offshore foreign exchange accounts (OSA foreign exchange accounts), the Circular requires that the identification NRA (NON-RESIDENT ACCOUNT) be marked on the form for domestic foreign exchange accounts of overseas institutions with NRA + the foreign exchange account number.From the banks perspective, no uniform requirements are imposed on the specific forms for marking the NRA identification. This provides the banks with the latitude to make the identification directly before the account number or to use alternative technologies such as a matching system for the NRA identification, on the condition that the identification is presented in the form of NRA+ the foreign exchange account number, enabling the payer and payee of foreign exchange funds to effectively identify the nature of the account. The Circular also requires that the domestic foreign exchange accounts of overseas institutions be incorporated into the foreign exchange account management information system. The domestic banks shall submit detailed information about the account opening, balance, receipt, and payment of the domestic foreign exchange accounts of overseas institutions via the system to the Foreign Exchange Administrations. The Foreign Exchange Administrations will notify the domestic banks separately regarding the specific time for submission of the information, based on the situation for upgrading and transforming the foreign exchange account management information system, the preparation of the banks, and so forth. The domestic banks shall make relevant preparations and submit the information about the declaration of the balance of payments statistics, the information about the non-resident deposits under the item of short-term external debt balanced management, and so forth. 2009-07-13/en/2009/0713/895.html
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The SAFE convened an extended meeting of the central team of the Party Leadership Group on September 21, 2009 to deliver and study the spirit of the Fourth Plenary Session (hereinafter referred to as the Session) of the 17th CPC Central Committee, and made plans for the tasks related to implementation of the spirit of the Session. Yi Gang, secretary of the Party leadership Group and administrator of the SAFE, chaired the meeting. It was pointed out at the meeting that the Session is an important meeting on the eve of the 60th anniversary of the founding of the New China, which is of significant and far-reaching importance for carrying out the spirit of the 17th CPC National Congress in an all-around manner, deeply implementing the scientific outlook on development, effectively coping with the impact of the global financial crisis, maintaining steady and rapid growth of the national economy, striving for new victories for the building of well-off society, as well as opening up new prospects for the construction of socialism with Chinese characteristics. It was proposed at the meeting that all Party members and cadres of the SAFE should earnestly comprehend the spirit of the Session, act in full conformity with the CPC Central Committee, continue to emancipate the mind, strive to be innovative and to blaze new trails, actively update concepts for foreign exchange administration, further enhance the service-oriented and market-oriented awareness of foreign exchange administration, constantly increase the service and management level of foreign exchange administration, and conscientiously safeguard the economic and financial security of the state so as to promote the steady and rapid development of the national economy. Yi Gang stressed that there still will be twists and turns before the global economy recovers. Since the foundation for an upswing in Chinas national economy is still not stable, firm, and balanced, the national economy is at a critical stage for maintaining growth and rebounding. To do a good job in foreign exchange administration requires that we comply with the important and strategic planning of the Session on strengthening and improving Party construction for the present and for the upcoming period, exert a major effort to construct a study-oriented Marxist political party, improve ideological and political consciousness of all Party members, persist in and perfect the system of democratic centralism, actively develop intra-Party democracy, deepen the reform of the personnel system relating to cadres, build ranks of high-quality cadres, fulfill the duties for fundamental work by improving work at the grassroots level, consolidate the organizational foundation for the leadership of the Party, carry forward the fine work style of the Party, maintain close bonds between the Party and the masses, speed up construction of a system to punish and prevent corruption, and thoroughly carry out the anti-corruption drive. It was pointed out at the meeting that some uncertainty will still exist for some time to come in terms of international capital flows and the balance of payments. Against the backdrop of the new circumstances and challenges, the foreign exchange administration departments should consolidate confidence and enhance the sense of crisis and risk awareness. The departments should continue to prioritize the maintenance of steady and rapid growth of the national economy as well as to promote a basic equilibrium in the balance of payments for foreign exchange administration, based on a scientific judgment of the economic situations both at home and abroad. The foreign exchange administrations must consistently cater to the needs for the steady and rapid growth of the national economy when fulfilling their duties, act in conformity with the policy orientation to prevent massive outflows or sudden influxes of capital, and conscientiously carry out the following foreign exchange administration tasks based on implementation of the spirit of the Session: First, further facilitate foreign exchange collection and payments for various market entities, expedite the reform of the verification and writing-off system for foreign exchange collection and payments for imports and exports, and constantly improve foreign exchange administration for trade in services. Second, further intensify efforts to reform and innovate the mechanism for foreign exchange administration, continue to emphasize the expansion of channels for capital outflows, push forward the opening of the capital account in a prudent and orderly manner, steadily promote product innovation on the foreign exchange market, and provide enterprises with more risk-hedging instruments. Third, further improve supervision for foreign exchange administration, enhance efforts for system integration, improve the statistical and monitoring system for cross-border fund flows, further enhance statistics, monitoring, analysis, and early warning levels for cross-border fund flows and the balance of payments, expedite the construction of foreign exchange administration laws and regulations, further increase the transparency and public credibility of foreign exchange administration, strengthen the balanced administration of cross-border fund inflows and outflows, and continue to improve the contingency mechanism for the balance of payments. Fourth, persist in fulfilling the responsibilities for the construction of Party work style and clean administration, intensify efforts for education, supervision, reform, and system innovation, enhance education on clean administration and self-discipline of cadres, improve various systems for the construction of Party work style and clean administration, and establish and perfect the internal control mechanism for administrative power so as to constantly reach new achievements in the construction of Party work style and clean administration. (The End) 2009-09-21/en/2009/0921/899.html
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We are an official institution under the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE), responsible for China's foreign exchange reserve management. We are now looking for high caliber professionals who share our commitment to "professional, responsible and international" asset management to join us. Our Culture Composed of young, qualified and motivated staff from diversified academic backgrounds of finance, economics, engineering, maths, computer science, languages and human resources etc., we embrace "Dedication, Discipline, Enterprise and Cooperation" as our core value and we attach utmost importance to the safety, liquidity, diversification and return of reserve assets under our management. We value human capital as the most important resource and offer competitive reward incentives. Vacancies Currently, we have the following job vacancies, based in Beijing headquarter and overseas offices: portfolio management, transaction execution, manager of managers, research and analysis, system development, operations and legal consultation. Requirement 1.Bachelor, Master or PhD degree from world renowned universities; 2.Over 2-year working experience with renowned overseas financial institutions; 3.Good command of both Chinese and English as working language; 4.Computer proficiency; 5.Other criteria specific to the vacancy. Application Procedures 1.Please visit the website of http://safe.chinahr.com to submit your CV and cover letter; 2.Application Deadline: December 4th,2009 (24:00 Beijing Time); 3.Short-listed applicants will be invited to interview after documentation screening; 4.New recruits will be required to sign Employment Contracts (with probation) in accordance with Chinese and local regulations. Contact Tel: 86-10-66218899 ext. 3073 (8:00-17:00 Beijing time) Fax: 86-10-66213319 Email: HR@mail.rmd-safe.gov.cn (recommended) 2009-10-31/en/2009/1031/903.html
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After twice disclosing in 2006 and 2007 the names of over 600 untraceable companies accused of foreign exchange fraud and in order to coincide with the 2008 nationwide Promotion of Honest Business Operations Month, the SAFE recently again disclosed cases of fraud by untraceable enterprises. Since April 2006, the SAFE has implemented a system for disclosure of (negative) information regarding illegal foreign exchange activities throughout the country, regularly releasing the information publicly and responding to online inquiries, in particular exposing information about fraud by untraceable enterprises both on the Web site of the SAFE and in the Financial Times. The 83 cases of fraud in the present disclosure represent the recent results of the foreign exchange administration and law enforcement inspections. In their operations, these enterprises violated the relevant laws and regulations of the state regarding foreign exchange administration. In addition, for other reasons they had their entity qualifications deregistered. As a result, the foreign exchange administrative departments cannot place the cases thereof on file or impose punishment. Such behavior not only disrupted the normal business environment and orderly competition in the foreign exchange market, but also resulted in hidden dangers to the financial security of the state. Therefore, enterprises and the relevant departments shall pay more attention to untraceable enterprises that commit foreign exchange violations, and shall prevent them from continuing to become in involved in other illegal activities that may cause damages to enterprises that are engaged in normal business operations. After twice disclosing in 2006 and 2007 the names of over 600 untraceable companies accused of foreign exchange fraud and in order to coincide with the 2008 nationwide Promotion of Honest Business Operations Month, the SAFE recently again disclosed cases of fraud by untraceable enterprises. Since April 2006, the SAFE has implemented a system for disclosure of (negative) information regarding illegal foreign exchange activities throughout the country, regularly releasing the information publicly and responding to online inquiries, in particular exposing information about fraud by untraceable enterprises both on the Web site of the SAFE and in the Financial Times. The 83 cases of fraud in the present disclosure represent the recent results of the foreign exchange administration and law enforcement inspections. In their operations, these enterprises violated the relevant laws and regulations of the state regarding foreign exchange administration. In addition, for other reasons they had their entity qualifications deregistered. As a result, the foreign exchange administrative departments cannot place the cases thereof on file or impose punishment. Such behavior not only disrupted the normal business environment and orderly competition in the foreign exchange market, but also resulted in hidden dangers to the financial security of the state. Therefore, enterprises and the relevant departments shall pay more attention to untraceable enterprises that commit foreign exchange violations, and shall prevent them from continuing to become in involved in other illegal activities that may cause damages to enterprises that are engaged in normal business operations. 2008-10-07/en/2008/1007/878.html
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For the purpose of improving the service level of individual domestic and foreign currency exchange businesses and satisfying the ever-increasing demand for individual domestic and foreign currency exchange, the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE) has approved the carrying out of pilots for individual domestic and foreign currency exchange franchise businesses in Beijing and Shanghai . In the pilots, eligible domestic non-financial institutions may provide domestic and foreign currency exchange services for individuals upon approval, operate domestic individual foreign exchange sale and purchase business and overseas individual foreign exchange sale business within the prescribed annual total quota, and handle the business of converting RMB into foreign currency for overseas individuals, with a cumulative amount not exceeding the equivalent of US$ 500 per person per day (US$ 1000 in outlets within the borders of the PRC but outside Customs). Institutions operating individual domestic and foreign currency exchange franchise businesses shall use the uniform exchange mark provided by the SAFE, and can use their own brands to conduct autonomous management and to take full responsibility for their own profits and losses; they may decide with which bank to cooperate, may choose the currencies for the listed transactions in line with their own service ability, and may determine their listed exchange rate with reference to the relevant provisions of the Administration of the Exchange Rate of the Peoples Bank of China. According to international experience, the individual domestic and foreign currency exchange market generally comprises bank outlets, franchise foreign currency dealers, and some specially engaged merchants, and it is a multi-level service system relating to different customer groups and different customer characteristics. The trial operation of the individual domestic and foreign currency exchange franchise business is conducive to taking advantage of the long business hours, various exchange currencies, flexible operating mechanisms, and specialized services of the operating institutions, which complement the domestic and foreign currency exchange business of the banks to better service the individual domestic and foreign currency exchange business. (End) 2008-08-20/en/2008/0820/876.html
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For the purpose of meeting the growing demand for domestic and foreign currency exchange by individuals, in August 2008 the SAFE initiated a pilot implementation of domestic and foreign currency exchange business to individuals in the localities of Beijing and Shanghai. Building on the results of the pilot implementation, the SAFE recently expanded the range of this pilot implementation and perfected the Measures for the Administration of the Pilot Implementation of Domestic and Foreign Currency Exchange Franchise Business to Individuals. There are four aspects to this expansion: first, the range of the pilot implementation has been expanded to 13 provinces, municipalities, and autonomous regions including Beijing and Shanghai, as well as 4 cities specifically designated in the state plan; second, the number of franchise operations institutions has been increased, and cross-regional chains of franchise operations institutions via the establishment of branches in the pilot areas are encouraged; third, relevant exchange procedures have been streamlined, viz. for small amounts of exchange business under USD 500 for each transaction, after completing the relevant procedures, the operations institutions are allowed to append the transaction data to the information system for the administration of settlement and sales of foreign exchange to individuals; fourth, regulatory compliance and operational conveniences have been taken into account in the pilot implementation, and the requirements for supervision of franchise operations institutions have been clarified. The expansion is expected to further satisfy the demand for domestic and foreign currency exchange by individuals in foreign-related economically strong regions, international tourist hubs, as well as border/port regions (apart from Beijing and Shanghai). The move will also stimulate fair competition in the market of domestic and foreign currency exchange to individuals, make the most of the advantages of the franchise operations institutions with respect to their business hours, vast diversity of exchange currencies, as well as their operational flexibility, and will upgrade the overall level of Chinas domestic and foreign currency exchange services to individuals. 2009-12-23/en/2009/1223/910.html