Promotion snub of Wen Jiabao son-in-law takes cue from Xi Jinping?
Surprise promotion within CBRC reflects Xi Jinping's emphasis on merit over connections
A reshuffle of senior staff at the mainland bank watchdog offers the clearest signal yet of a shift in the way the new government of President Xi Jinping will promote top officials, sources with ties to the Beijing leadership say.
The appointment of Yang Jiacai as assistant chairman of the China Banking Regulatory Commission, announced on Tuesday, saw him leapfrog Liu Chunhang - the son-in-law of former premier Wen Jiabao and the head of the CBRC statistics and research departments and a member of the elite "reserved official" promotion programme.
"If you read Xi's speeches, even before he was made head of state, it is very clear that he has had second thoughts on 'reserved officials'," a source with close ties to the State Council, told .
"He wants to promote and appoint people who are capable and more experienced in different functions of the government."
The "reserved official" scheme provides the talent pool from which the Communist Party has plucked top officials. Scheme members are typically awarded jobs when candidates are equally well-qualified.
Yang's promotion - which sees him take over the role vacated by Yan Qingming, who has been elevated to vice-chairman, succeeding Cai Ersheng - surprised CBRC insiders as well as some senior bankers who had widely expected Liu to get the job.
Liu joined CBRC in 2006 after working abroad for investment bank Morgan Stanley and consultancy firm McKinsey. He obtained a doctorate in economics from Oxford University.
