Despite trade row with US, China scraps foreign ownership limits for banks

Move is another step in financial opening started in November

China removed limits on foreign ownership of its banks and bad-debt managers, pushing ahead with a previously announced plan to open its financial system despite rising trade tensions with the US.

Overseas financial institutions will now be treated the same as local companies, the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission said in a statement late Thursday, following through on a pledge announced last year. Stakes were previously capped at 20 percent for a single foreign institution and 25 percent for a group.

The move is part of China’s longstanding effort to increase its integration with the global financial system, but it may