ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the variety of business systems and addresses the role of Western bankers in each different system. It suggests that China's banking sector is not in any way homogenous. China's banking sector consists of a number of different kinds of institutions and, as a consequence, the sector itself is composed of diverse business systems. Comparative business systems approaches provide conceptual frameworks which have the scope and flexibility to achieve this aim and can thus deepen our understanding of the Chinese banking sector. While it is fair to say that a number of Western banks have also received considerable state support, Chinese regulators still place relatively more emphasis on the role of banks in promoting China's economic growth, rather than simply as vehicles for the pursuit of profit. In China, strategic industries, such as finance and banking, remain closely networked to government at various levels.
