The authorities should strengthen regulation of trade finance provided by non-financial institutions and draft corresponding rules to prevent risks from piling up, said bank executives and analysts.

"Banks are facing rising competition from e-commerce and logistics companies in terms of providing financing services for traders, which would promote service innovation and upgrading among lenders in the long run," said Chen Siqing, a vice-president of Bank of China Ltd, one of the country's four largest State-owned lenders.But the risks are also piling up, said Chen.

"The development target and risk management standards of non-financing companies are quite different from those of banks. Therefore regulators should enhance supervision of such trade financing activities."