NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

Thursday, January 21, 2016

Despite a reform programme and efforts to scale up healthcare funding in China, the ADB said shortfalls remain in access to finance in some underdeveloped regions. Lease finance, whereby a leasing company buys an asset on behalf of the user and rents it to them for an agreed period, offers an attractive option for hospitals needing high-value equipment, it said.

Biao Huang, an investment specialist in the ADB’s Private Sector Operations Department, said despite “impressive strides” by the government to scale up healthcare spending and public health insurance schemes across China, there are still substantial differences in quality of services and access to finance.

“This loan to Yingda International Leasing, a Sino-foreign joint venture company with a strong track record in healthcare leasing finance, will give it the longer term funds it needs to help hospitals in underdeveloped regions raise the standard of their facilities and healthcare.”

The ADB said the loan will support the provision of equipment and facilities for hospitals in the western and central regions of China, which fare worse than the country’s coastal east.