Economists have long maintained that a well-developed and functioning financial system is a vital prerequisite to economic growth. Countries with robust banking sectors and securities markets-that is, countries in which credit cards, loans, mortgages, and the ability to issue stocks and bonds...

Within the past three decades China has undergone tremendous structural changes in its economy. The Editors discuss the recent and ongoing reforms in China's financial system and their role in the world economy. China's GDP has grown almost three times the world average, now only behind the...