China's tech small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) enjoyed better access to bank loans in the first quarter of 2026, central bank data showed Wednesday.
A total of 303,300 tech SMEs obtained loans by the end of Q1, with the loan approval rate reaching 50.4 percent, up 0.2 percentage points from the end of 2025, according to the People's Bank of China (PBOC).
The outstanding loans in both Chinese and foreign currencies to tech SMEs stood at 4.03 trillion yuan (about 587.4 billion U.S. dollars), up 20.9 percent year on year, it added.
The PBOC also reported that 294,600 high-tech enterprises received loan support by the end of March, with an approval rate of 58.6 percent, up 1.3 percentage points from the end of last year. Outstanding loans to high-tech enterprises reached 20.96 trillion yuan, up 13.6 percent year on year.
Green loans continued to steadily increase. Outstanding green loans totaled 48.1 trillion yuan by the end of the first quarter, up 17.6 percent year on year.
The growth of inclusive loans to small and micro enterprises has been relatively stable. At the end of the first quarter, the balance of RMB-inclusive small and micro loans was 38.38 trillion yuan, increasing by 10.3 percent year-on-year. The growth rate was 4.6 percentage points higher than the overall loan growth rate, the PBOC said.
China's tech SMEs see improved access to loans in Q1
