Premier Li Keqiang asked China Construction Bank (CCB), a State-owned commercial bank, to provide support for the development of real economy and small and medium enterprises (SMEs) during his inspection visit to CCB’s head office in Beijing on June 20.

Premier Li said the banking industry actually belongs to the service sector, and all banks should contribute to the construction of the real economy. He expressed hopes that CCB could play a leading role in this effort.

CCB should actively link up with major national projects, increase lending and financing services in infrastructure construction, and continue to streamline enterprise-related fees and lower service fees and loan rates to reduce financing costs and ease enterprises’ burden, said the Premier.

According to what Premier Li said during his visit about small and medium enterprises (SMEs) having great market potential, CCB should increase its support for SMEs and mass entrepreneurship and innovation, vitalize credit funds, integrate public information of enterprises and business owners to help them increase credit for financing.

The “Internet Plus” strategy will help CCB establish a smarter bank network for SMEs. All these efforts, which also include supporting crowd funding, will optimize the bank’s technological finance products and services for mass entrepreneurship.

CCB is expected to make efforts to ensure the implementation of VAT, as Premier Li said that tax burdens should be reduced in the finance industry. Following Premier Li’s instruction, the bank will conduct data reporting and calculation coordinating with the Finance Ministry and State Administration Taxation, to provide a data basis for their decision making.

To better serve China’s economy, CCB decided to make great strides in financial innovation during its senior heads meeting after the Premier’s inspection visit. The efforts include developing the bank’s unique advantages in infrastructure construction and other areas, providing good financial services for supply-side structural reform, carrying out innovation targeting consumers’ needs, and cultivating new driving forces of growth. CCB will also strive to prevent risks through risk management, introducing a compliance officer system, and supervision of cross-market and cross-industry risks.