THE China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) has issued provisional rules setting risk management and capital adequacy targets for futures trading companies.

Among other requirements, futures trading companies should ensure that current liabilities do not exceed 100 percent of current assets, and that total liabilities do not exceed 150 percent of net assets, the CSRC said in a statement Friday.

Under the provisional rules, futures trading companies will be required to establish internal control mechanisms to ensure they meet the targets and will issue reports on their risk management practices, to be audited annually by qualified accountants.

Financial futures have been banned in China since a scandal in 1995, but the government has been preparing a regulatory framework for the introduction of stock-index futures and other financial derivatives.

Under previously issued rules that will take effect April 15, firms with at least 30 million yuan (US$3.88 million) of registered capital will be able to apply for futures trading licenses, though it remains unclear when the products themselves will be introduced.

(SD-Agencies)