China’s new forex party chief will oversee US$3 trillion in reserves while trying to stabilise the yuan
- Zhu Hexin’s political pedigree is a bit different than some of his predecessors, starting with a factory job and working his way to the upper echelon of Chinese finance
- Appointment comes as Beijing has engaged in a financial regulatory shake-up to combat the mounting risks facing world’s second-largest economy
A veteran Chinese banker has been appointed party chief of the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE) – a vital role in helping to guard against the economic headwinds of US rate hikes while managing the world’s largest foreign exchange reserve.
In the latest personnel reshuffle among China’s key financial regulators, 55-year-old Zhu Hexin has replaced Pan Gongsheng, who still heads the country’s central bank. Zhu has thus become a key member of China’s financial regulatory team tasked with combating the raft of financial risks facing the world’s second-largest economy.
Zhu, the former head of state-owned investment and financial conglomerate Citic Group, has also been appointed as a member of the party committee of the central bank, according to a statement by SAFE, which reports to the central bank.
“Naming Zhu makes sense, as China is going through huge challenges,” said Alicia Garcia-Herrero, chief economist for Asia-Pacific at French investment bank Natixis. “His banking and market expertise and experience are needed at the current juncture, given the weakness of the [yuan] and the need for the kind of unorthodox intervention as we have already seen by having the banks intervene.”
Analysts also expect that Zhu’s down-to-Earth nature and his vast work portfolio will help him tackle some of China’s most pressing financial challenges.
