Recently, five authorities, including the People's Bank of China ("PBC"), have jointly issued the Guiding Opinions on Providing Financial Services for Rural Revitalization (the "Opinions").
The Opinions set objectives in three stages for the rural revitalization strategy. In the near term, priority will be given to ensuring objectives are scientific and feasible, and it is expected to see ever-growing targeted financial measures in support of poverty relief, increasing financial resources in support of agriculture and continuous improvement to financial services offered in rural areas, by 2020. Also, the Opinions call for efforts to persist in advancing the rural financial reform and development in the correct direction and strive for a sound framework of financial service organizations that is proper to revitalize and develop rural areas; clearly define the fields that will receive prioritized support and practically direct more financial resources to key fields and weak processes of rural revitalization, so as to enhance financial supplies in rural areas; step up innovation in both financial products and ways in which financial services are delivered, with the focus on collaterals and pledges from agriculture and rural areas and on financial institutions' internal credit loan management mechanism, in order to better meet diversified financing demands for rural revitalization; give full play to functions of financial markets, such as the equity market, and establish a sound multi-source capital supply system, in a bid to provide more financing sources for rural revitalization; and strengthen the building of financial infrastructure to create a favorable financial eco-environment in rural areas.