China's four state-owned asset management companies are actively preparing their own join-stock reform.

Sources say the State Council is close to naming the company, which will lead the process. The four companies are Huarong, Cinda, Great Wall and China Orient, and they were established in 1999.

They took over a total of 1.4 trillion yuan (about US$168 billion) in non-performing loans from the big four state-owned commercial banks. Their creation was a major step in the reform of banking sector, but now regulators say they too need to initiate reforms to adopt a modern corporate structure.

Previously, they'd been granted a fairly broad business scope, including some commercially based financing business to prepare them for life after their government policy tasks are completed.

(CCTV.com August 8, 2005)