Wenzhou mayor seeks central govt help for reforms

Wenzhou needs further legislation and major policy endorsements to provide new momentum to its widely watched financial reforms, the city's mayor said on Wednesday.

Those endorsements include allowing individuals in the coastal city to invest abroad directly; granting the numerous small-sum loan companies "financial institution" status; and enacting a law to institutionalize current private lending, Chen Jinbiao said.

All of the above initiatives are beyond the authority of Wenzhou's local government.