Foreign investors will see wider A-share market

China's securities regulator decided to further expose the A-share market to more foreign investors starting on Sept 15, according to an announcement released on Wednesday night.

Foreigners working in the Chinese mainland, or employed by companies listed there, can access the A-share market by opening an account.

The move will benefit broader opening up in China's stock market, independent financial commentator Pi Haizhou said on his blog. His comments came last month, when the China Securities Regulatory Commission solicited public opinion on a revised draft for securities registration, settlement and equity incentives for listed companies.

A-share accounts were previously available for foreign investors only if they were granted permanent residence in China, allowed to hold their own company's shares in the Chinese mainland stock market, or partook in a stock option incentive plan in a mainland A-share listed company, provided they also worked in the mainland.

The decision will also improve the equity incentive scheme for companies which are publicly traded on the domestic market, Pi noted, adding the policy revision will underpin expansion. These companies would be more attractive to foreign talent not required to work in China.

On top of that, Chinese stock accounts will only be open to investors from countries or regions whose securities administration has established regulatory cooperation with CSRC, following an instruction which was published by China Securities Depository and Clearing Corporation Limited on Wednesday.

At present, 62 countries and regions have signed bilateral collaborative agreements with CSRC, including the US, Russia, Singapore, Australia, the UK and Japan, as data compiled by STCN.com in July indicated.

An expert told the news outlet the measure could lower regulatory barriers to protect the interests of A-share investors.

CSRC said in the announcement it will cope with other departments to manage related issues like taxation and foreign exchange transactions, to ensure the new policy would settle in smoothly.