By the end of April, the number of commercial banks in rural areas across the country had surpassed 1,000, according to the China Banking Regulatory Commission. Finding financing in rural areas is much easier than it was a decade ago, but nearly 1,000 rural counties in China still lack banking services, particularly in the country’s west.
Data from China’s central bank show that only 54 percent of rural counties in China have a bank. According to a survey by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, nearly 70 percent of households in rural areas find it difficult to get a bank loan. The central government has prioritized addressing rural banking deficiencies this year, but it will face great infrastructural challenges in improving the financial environment in rural areas.
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