Asset management companies from Taiwan are being encouraged to play a bigger part in the mainland market, a top securities regulator said on Sunday.

Guo Shuqing, chairman of the China Securities Regulatory Commission, said more Taiwan asset management firms are welcome to help develop the market, as an initial step for more businesses, such as underwriting, to be carried out.

Speaking at a press conference on the sidelines of the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, Guo said that Taiwan institutions have been keen to apply for qualified foreign institutional investor (QFII) status in the mainland, under the Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement, and some have been granted licenses.

The CSRC has also encouraged qualified domestic institutional investors (QDII) to expand their investment in the Taiwan Stock Exchange, Guo said, with numbers expected to grow.

He added that the lifting of the limit for foreign investment stake in domestic brokerages, from 33 percent to 49 percent, also applies to investors from Taiwan.

Professional securities industry qualifications are already mutually recognized across the Taiwan Straits, Guo said.