A pilot cash-pooling service integrating domestic and foreign currency management for multinational companies in China will be further optimized, the country's monetary authorities said Wednesday.
The move aims to enhance the facilitation of cross-border investment and financing for multinational companies, according to the People's Bank of China and the State Administration of Foreign Exchange.
The move will focus on reducing corporate financing costs, enhancing cross-border payment and receipt facilitation, streamlining cross-border fund management, and further improving capital utilization efficiency for multinational companies.
The latest move will involve a total of 10 regions comprising Beijing, Shanghai, Jiangsu and Zhejiang, Guangdong, Hainan, Shaanxi, Ningbo, Qingdao and Shenzhen designed to operate pilot projects of the cash-pooling service, according to the authorities.
The pilot cash-pooling service was first launched in Beijing and the southern economic powerhouse of Shenzhen in 2021. It was expanded to include Shanghai, Guangdong, Shaanxi and other regions in 2022.
Cash pooling refers to the consolidation of a company's various bank accounts into a single account or "pool," which is used to manage the company's overall cash position. This allows the company to more easily track and control its cash flow, as well as take advantage of any available interest income or cost savings.
China further optimizes cash-pooling service for multinational companies
Over 50 international guests, including foreign government officials, scholars and experts, on Tuesday visited the 12345 Beijing Citizen Hotline Service Center headquarters, where they were impressed by the professionalism of the operators and the efficient troubleshooting process.
The visit, which was a side event of the two-day Beijing Forum on Swift Response to Public Complaints (SRPC), provided the international guests a firsthand look at the center.
The visitors, aided by simultaneous voice translators, were shown around to observe how complaints are swiftly managed at the center.
The 12345 hotline, a key tool for Beijing residents to voice their concerns, ensures that once a complaint is filed, it is quickly directed to a related local government or a public service department for resolution.
The guests were given a tour of the intelligent platform that manages the 12345 hotline, which integrates smart reception, complaint dispatching, evaluation, and analysis. This digital platform is integral to Beijing's urban governance, using big data to prioritize urgent issues and ensure precise and efficient responses.
Thanks to the big data analysis, the system can pinpoint the most urgent problems with the highest concerns, and then take precise measures.
Over the past six years, the 12345 citizen hotline service has handled 150 million complaints and inquiries from the public and enterprises.
The resolution rate of appeals has increased from 53 percent to 97 percent, and the satisfaction rate among people whose appeals have been resolved has increased from 65 percent to 97 percent.
The Beijing Forum on Swift Response to Public Complaints closed on Thursday in Beijing. The permanent theme of the forum is "People's City, Better Future", and the 2024 forum theme was "Modernizing for People-Centered Urban Governance."
Int'l guests visit Beijing citizen hotline service headquarters
