A small bank in China's eastern Jiangsu Province was hit by a bank run after rumors emerged about a possible bankruptcy, the state-run China News Service reported.
The bank run occurred Monday at a branch of Jiangsu Sheyang Rural Commercial Bank in Yancheng, according to the report.
A bank official said "everything is normal" and depositors can withdraw as much money from the bank as they want.
She said, however, that the bank would remain open after normal working hours to ensure that people who want to withdraw money can do so. She also said the bank has sufficient funds to meet all customer needs.
Jiangsu Sheyang Rural Commercial Bank is relatively small and a run wouldn't be a threat to China's huge financial system. The bank said it had deposits of 12 billion yuan (about $2 billion) at the end of February.
China News Service didn't give any reason for the rumors about the bank, though it said local depositors were nervous about the solvency of financial institutions in general after some local guarantee companies ran out of cash and their bosses fled. It gave no further details.
Banks in China benefit from an implicit government guarantee that they will receive support in the event of serious financial problems.This year, however, Beijing is expected to introduce a deposit insurance program that would ensure clear but limited protection for depositors as part of its efforts to liberalize the financial sector.
The bank run occurred Monday at a branch of Jiangsu Sheyang Rural Commercial Bank in Yancheng, according to the report.
A bank official said "everything is normal" and depositors can withdraw as much money from the bank as they want.
She said, however, that the bank would remain open after normal working hours to ensure that people who want to withdraw money can do so. She also said the bank has sufficient funds to meet all customer needs.
Jiangsu Sheyang Rural Commercial Bank is relatively small and a run wouldn't be a threat to China's huge financial system. The bank said it had deposits of 12 billion yuan (about $2 billion) at the end of February.
China News Service didn't give any reason for the rumors about the bank, though it said local depositors were nervous about the solvency of financial institutions in general after some local guarantee companies ran out of cash and their bosses fled. It gave no further details.
Banks in China benefit from an implicit government guarantee that they will receive support in the event of serious financial problems.This year, however, Beijing is expected to introduce a deposit insurance program that would ensure clear but limited protection for depositors as part of its efforts to liberalize the financial sector.