China Closed Hundreds Of Banks In A Sweeping Cleanup. Rural Lenders Remain The Weakest Link.

Source: International Business Times

Customers use ATM machines in Beijing on May 6, 2026. Beijing has accelerated the consolidation of smaller lenders as regulators seek to strengthen the country’s banking system. Getty Images China closed a record 670 banking institutions in 2025 as Beijing accelerated a sweeping consolidation of smaller lenders, with authorities increasingly relying on mergers and dissolutions to reduce risks concentrated in the country's rural banking sector.