Beijing court seeks steps to reduce loan disputes

A Beijing court said on Wednesday that measures aimed at resolving loan issues are necessary to maintain order in the market and to alleviate financial risks.

From 2014 to June this year, Beijing No 4 Intermediate People's Court handled 230 cases relating to loan contracts, of which, 178 have been resolved.

The amount involved in the cases reached 2.59 billion yuan ($4 billion), according to a statement of the court.

"Disputes over money borrowed from banks or financial institutes are rising rapidly," said Wu Zaicun, president of the court, at a news conference on Wednesday.

Wu said that it’s not easy to handle such cases as new types of financial loans are springing up in the capital, in addition to traditional borrowing from banks."

He said some financial institutes underestimate risks and are sometimes unwilling to cooperate with the court during investigations, "which delay the case hearing and hinder trials."

He suggested that banks and financial institutes should increase legal awareness adding that the court has also taken measures to solve the increasingly serious problem.

"For example, while a litigant is applying for property preservation to us, we are filing the case at the same time to stop someone from transferring the property," he said.