The stricter mandates, which will take effect on April 18, come on the back of a regulatory tightening that has swept across China's financial sector despite the economy's wobbly post-COVID recovery and analysts see the revamped rules as an inhibitor for new players.

($1 = 7.1981 Chinese yuan renminbi)

(Reporting by Qiaoyi Li and Ryan Woo; Editing by David Goodman)