People's Bank of China, Announcement [2017] No.7

(1) having an establishment established in China and such establishment having carried out record filing with the (sub-)branch of the People's Bank of China at the level of provincial capital central sub-branch or above of the place where it is located;

(2) undertaking to submit the CRB it engages in to the oversight of the People's Bank of China, or the credit rating regulator of the country or region where it is located having executed a cooperative credit rating regulation agreement with the People's Bank of China; and

(3) its corporate governance structure being sound, and its major shareholders and de facto controller not having potential conflicts of interest in terms of equity percentage, voting rights or others that would be sufficient to affect the independence of its credit ratings (Article 2).

Related legislation: Tentative Measures for the Administration of the Cooperation in Mutual Access between the Mainland and Hong Kong Bond Markets

Issued: July 1 2017

Effective: as of date of issuance

Applicability: Administration of Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan credit rating agencies shall be carried out, mutatis mutandis, in accordance with that of foreign credit rating agency (Article 14).

Main contents: A lawfully established foreign credit rating agency with legal personality that wishes to engage in credit rating business on the interbank bond market relating to the offering of bonds (CRB) shall satisfy conditions including:

(1) having an establishment established in China and such establishment having carried out record filing with the (sub-)branch of the People's Bank of China at the level of provincial capital central sub-branch or above of the place where it is located;

(2) undertaking to submit the CRB it engages in to the oversight of the People's Bank of China, or the credit rating regulator of the country or region where it is located having executed a cooperative credit rating regulation agreement with the People's Bank of China; and

(3) its corporate governance structure being sound, and its major shareholders and de facto controller not having potential conflicts of interest in terms of equity percentage, voting rights or others that would be sufficient to affect the independence of its credit ratings (Article 2).

Related legislation: Tentative Measures for the Administration of the Cooperation in Mutual Access between the Mainland and Hong Kong Bond Markets