When the outline on the Yangtze River Delta (YRD) integration was released, the banking industry in Shanghai immediately took action to facilitate industrial transformation and upgrading and coordinated development in the YRD region through finance, according to the Shanghai Banking Association.

Some banking institutions have officially launched overall work plans on YRD integration to enhance the service level through increasing credit support, reducing financial service costs and improving financial service efficiency.

Liu Qi, an official from the Shanghai banking and insurance regulatory bureau, said that many institutions were making preparations for the work plan formulation through field visits and other research. It is expected that many market entities will release related plans.

In fact, several banks in Shanghai have long regarded Shanghai, Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Anhui provinces as a whole at the business level. The Bank of Communications Shanghai branch coordinated with seven other branches in the Yangtze River Delta to optimize group customer integration management in the region. Since Dec 1 inner-bank transfers and remittances by enterprises through the Bank of Communications' e-bank have been free within the YRD region.

"Banks have to change their operation modes, information communication methods and risk taking strategies to further enhance the service level when regarding Shanghai, Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Anhui as a whole," said Huang Tao, Bank of Shanghai's deputy governor. To promote YRD integration development, the Bank of Shanghai will focus on the key fields of science and technology innovation and inclusive finance, and also increase credit resources. It will make greater efforts to reduce fees for small and medium enterprises and lower financial costs for key supported industries in the YRD region.

Another local bank, Shanghai Rural Commercial Bank, is focused on fund demand. The bank is expected to provide at least 200 billion yuan ($28.63 billion) of credit for customers in the Yangtze River Delta region (excluding Shanghai) in the next five years.