China to increase foreign currency purchases’ scrutiny

China to increase foreign currency purchases’ scrutiny

Beijing (Web Desk): China has decided to increase monitoring of how citizens use their annual quota for changing yuan into foreign currencies, Bloomberg News reported.

The State Administration of Foreign Exchange will require extra documentation for people seeking to sell yuan from Jan. 1, while keeping each person’s annual $50,000 allowance unchanged, said the people, who asked not to be identified as they’re not allowed to speak publicly. Banks will be asked to increase scrutiny of transactions, they said.

At present, there is no change to the current policy regarding foreign exchange purchases by individuals, SAFE said in a statement.

 Individuals need identification cards to buy foreign exchange at banks within their annual quota, and if the purchase value exceeds annual quotas, they must also provide documents to verify the transaction value, the administration said.

China’s foreign reserves, the world’s largest stockpile, fell to a five-year low of $3.05 trillion as of November.