BEIJING — The balance of loans from Chinese banking and financial institutions to technology-based enterprises was up 23.2 percent by the end of 2021 from the beginning of the year, data from the country's top banking regulator showed.

The growth was 12.1 percentage points higher than the average growth rate of all loans, according to the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission.

By the end of last year, banking institutions nationwide had set up 959 science and technology-related branches in China, up 14.4 percent year-on-year.

Last year, the commission urged banks and insurance institutions to provide better services for sci-tech innovation.