Private lenders offer little help for sagging SMEs(2)

However, Wenzhou's financial situation does not appear health, with little sign of recovery, since it has become burdened with a high volume of non-performing loans.

According to the figures released by the Wenzhou branch of the China Banking Regulatory Commission, the value of non-performing loans for the first six months exceeded 18 billion yuan, doubling over the past year and growing without any let up over a 12-month period.

"The sinking loan lending system was obviously caused by the credit crisis last September and it will take a long time for lenders to regain their trust toward lenders," said Zhou Dewen, the chairman of Wenzhou SME Development Association.

Zhou added that it's essential that the local government apply more directly effective measures carried out to break the impasse and eventually solve the long-term financial problems step by step.

Established as another major step to follow Wenzhou's private lending registration service, Wenzhou SME financing service center was launched on July 28 to ensure that SMEs could obtain low-interest loans, to make contributions to the real economy in a short time.

"We have to monitor the borrowers who urgently need the cash to save their companies from financial straits instead of making any investments, in order to control the risk for the lenders," said Wang Xiuzhi, the spokesman for the center.

Wang added that the center also aims to rebuild a credit platform for SMEs whose reputations have suffered because of the hundreds of businessmen who fled from their debt burdens since last September's financial crisis.

Wang, who owns a credit guarantee company, has the confidence that he will be able to gather reliable moneylenders and ensure that every qualified borrower obtains loans even in greater amounts than they expected.

Local business owners failed to find life any easier or their difficulties eased.

"We've shut down one out of three production lines and sent one-third of our workers home, because of a 40 percent decline in orders over the last year," said Zhang Ming, manager of Wenzhou Sincere Shoes, a medium-sized footwear manufacturer mainly exporting women's shoes to Europe and Africa.

Zhang added that the company is expected to earn only 10 percent net profit compared to last year, so his company hasn't benefited from the financial reform at all.

The Wenzhou financial reform plaza was launched on August 8 as the most updated step in the financial reform in the city since March.

A total of 32 enterprises and agencies set up their offices in the plaza to offer a financial platform for individuals and companies to make investments and trade directly.

The small-and-mini-sized enterprises financing service center, the auction trading center, private capital management center and overseas investment information and service center were also launched in the plaza for investors.

More centers and agencies will be introduced to the plaza to help enterprises take part in all kinds of financial projects.

"The launch of the plaza will combine all financial related industries together to make sure that a full service will be provided to SMEs to solve their financing problems, investment and multiple investment channels," said Cen Li, the manager of Wenzhou State-owned Assets Investment Management Holdings (Group) Co Ltd, one of the company that has moved to the plaza after the formal launch.

Cen added the newly launched plaza is the biggest step with the most effort from the local government, and it is hoped that the measure will reboot the economy soon.