China's central bank eyes greater role for fintech

Deputy Governor of the People's Bank of China Fan Yifei attends a press conference on the financial reform and development for the second session of the 13th National People's Congress (NPC) in Beijing, capital of China, March 10, 2019. (Xinhua/Shen Bohan)

BEIJING, March 10 (Xinhua) -- China will boost the role of financial technology (fintech) in serving the real economy and forestalling financial risks, deputy governor of the central bank said Sunday.

Fintech is expected to help easing financial difficulties and lowering costs for private enterprises and small- and micro-sized businesses, Fan Yifei, deputy governor of the People's Bank of China, told a news conference on the sidelines of the annual legislative session.

Technologies like neural network can help address issues including information asymmetry and imprecise risk identification, he said, adding that the country will promote the construction of top-level information infrastructure and make financial regulation more technology-intensive, Fan said.

The country has launched pilot programs for fintech application in 10 provincial-level regions including Beijing, Shanghai and Guangdong in late 2018, he said.