--FILE--A pedestrian walks past an advertisement for The Export-Import Bank of China in Shanghai, China, 4 November 2014. China's government is strengthening control over the country's three major policy banks to position them better to support new initiatives to finance projects and corporate expansions abroad and to help stabilize growth at home. The State Council, China's cabinet, on Sunday (12 April 2015) released approvals for reform plans at the banks: China Development Bank, the Export-Import Bank of China and Agricultural Development Bank of China. While lacking in detail, the plans seek to reverse an increasingly commercialized strategy pursued by at least two of these banks and reinforce their role as a financing tool of the Chinese government, according to government advisers and analysts. The State Council stressed the banks' roles in supporting government policies and strategic goals. The plans call for the banks to improve their risk management and internal controls. As China's economic growth slows and its vast commercial-banking sector is struggling with rising bad debts, the government is looking to the policy banks to reinforce support for key objectives.
