Capital adequacy is the minimum level of capital required, by regulation, to be held by a bank. It is also a good measure of a bank's net worth and reflects a bank's ability to bear losses without becoming insolvent. As regulator, the PBOC realized early the importance of having sufficient reserves to offset losses from bad debt. Prior to March 1998, the reserves required were 18 to 20% of deposits. Now there is a legal requirement for banks to hold a minimum capital adequacy ratio of 8%. The main reason for this reduction was to improve the economics of the banks in China.

资本充足是要求银行持有的最低资本限度。这也是很好权衡银行的资本净值并反映银行能承担损失而不致破产的能力。作为主管银行，PBOC（中国人民银行）早就意识到拥有足够储备金以弥补坏账亏损的重要性。1998年3月以前，规定储备金为存款的18到20%。现在法律要求银行拥有最低的资本充足率为8%。这次缩减的主要原因是为了改善中国的银行经济状况