The Challenges Confronting the Banking System Reform in China: An Analysis in Light of Japan's Experience of Financial Liberalization

China's banking system reform has made notable progress since 2002. After restoring their balance sheets, Chinese banks have aggressively increased lending and contributed to supporting the country' s economy given the global financial crisis. Thus far, the regulated deposit and lending interest rates, undeveloped capital markets, and restrictions in cross-border capital transactions have given banks an advantage in gaining profits. However, along with the full-blown reform of the economic system toward a market-oriented economy, the conditions protecting banks' profits will change in the future. The experiences of Japanese banks under the financial liberalization that occurred during the 1970s and 1980s indicate how important it is for commercial banks to change their business models in accordance with the fundamental changes in the economy. These experiences may be useful for considering the subsequent reform process of the financial system in China.