China will optimize policies on managing cross-border funds for multinational firms with piloted steps, the People's Bank of China, the country's central bank, said in a statement on Friday.

The statement said that the PBOC will work with China's State Administration of Foreign Exchange to update and improve policies on the centralized operation of cross-border funds in local and foreign currencies for multinational companies. Piloted steps on this front will be rolled out in cities of Beijing and Shenzhen as well as Guangdong province.

Specifically, multinational companies will be granted greater freedom in managing cross-border funds and will have their mandate about the proportion of foreign debt and offshore lending in accordance with macro-prudential principles. Current requirements concerning the centralized operation of multinational companies' cross-border funds will be integrated and optimized.

Multinational companies will be supported to carry out businesses of centralized operation of cross-border funds in the Chinese currency renminbi. Relevant approval and record-filing procedures will be streamlined.