In late 2016, the Chinese State Council announced new capital
controls were to be put in place as of January 1, 2017, with the
aim of reducing the outflow of currency from China. These new
measures are seen as likely to have significant impacts on
industries around the globe, such as housing markets and insurance,
as well as the broader market for international mergers and
acquisitions (M&A) by initiated by Chinese
companies around the world.
Crackdown on money laundering
One of the principal aims of the regulations appears to be a
crackdown on money laundering through the purchase of overseas
properties. According to Bloomberg, for individuals, the
regulations introduced restrictions on international payments and
reporting requirements for banks whose customers seek to complete
any cash transaction in amounts greater than 50,000 yuan or any
overseas transfer of amounts equal to USD$10,000 or more. When
completing applicable foreign exchange transactions,
