Agricultural Development Bank of China (ADBC) has been given the nod to grant loans to small agro-firms, a "breakthrough" for the policy bank whose loans mostly go to government-designated agricultural and rural sectors.
 
Approved by the China Banking Regulatory Commission, pilot business will be conducted by the ADBC's Shandong, Jiangxi and Chongqing branches, before spreading to the whole bank, it said in a statement.

Loans will target small agro-businesses that "exert a fairly big impact on the development of agriculture and rural economy and broadly represent the planting, breeding and processing industries," ADBC said.