Shenzhen banks asked to tighten home-loan practices

Beijing

A RESEARCH unit of China's central bank branch in Shenzhen asked commercial banks in the city to strengthen risk-control practices on household mortgage loans as property prices have soared, according to a statement obtained by Bloomberg News.

Mortgage leverage in Shenzhen has been far higher than in other first-tier cities since 2015, and has accumulated risks, according to the Financial Society of Shenzhen Special Economic Zone, a research unit under the local branch of the People's Bank of China.