BEIJING - Mainland branches of six Taiwanese banks have reported profitable business since the two sides lifted the ban on cross-Straits branches in 2010, a senior mainland bank official said Friday.

The branches, which mostly began operating in late 2010, have gained profits of 30.47 million yuan ($4.84 million), said Liu Mingkang, chairman of the China Banking Regulatory Commission (CBRC), at a forum in Beijing.

They have total assets of 5.1 billion yuan and have issued a total of 463 million yuan in loans, Liu said.

A memorandum of understanding (MOU) on financial supervision, signed between the Chinese mainland and Taiwan, took effect in January 2010,allowing banks to set up branches on each other's sides.

Prior to the agreement, Taiwanese banks could only set up representative offices in the mainland.

According to the document, only mainland branches of Taiwanese banks that turn a profit in the first year of operation are allowed to provide banking services in renminbi (RMB) for Taiwanese companies in the mainland. And they will be able to operate RMB business for all clients after two profitable years.

According to Liu, four other Taiwanese banks have applied to open mainland branches, and the CBRC will process their applications as quickly as possible.

Meanwhile, four mainland banks have established representative offices in Taiwan, and two of them have applied to the island's authorities for upgrading the offices to branches.

The Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement (ECFA) signed by the two sides last June has provided a favorable cooperation platform for banking regulators, Liu said.

He pledged to improve supervision and support the stable development of cross-Straits financial business.