China's foreign exchange regulator announced Wednesday it is cancelling 11 certification materials on foreign exchange management in a bid to streamline the approval procedures.

According to China's State Administration of Foreign Exchange, applicants no longer need to provide 11 evidentiary materials concerning outbound investment, insurance credit and foreign exchange trading starting February 1. The foreign exchange regulator will conduct internal verification instead.

Originally, enterprises had to complete a slew of application forms and submit evidentiary materials before engaging in certain activities, which could be a time-consuming process.

Industry insiders take the move as an important measure to streamline administrative work and improve services, as well as to optimize the business environment and stimulate market vitality in China. 

China will continue to push forward high-level opening-up and shorten its negative list, Vice Minister of Commerce Wang Shouwen said Wednesday.

China's overall ranking in the World Bank Group's Doing Business 2020 study surged to the 31st spot this year, from 46th a year ago and 78th in 2017.