China is working to protect its overseas assets amid fears the US could impose Russia-style sanctions, reports say

China is taking steps to protect its overseas assets, amid fears that it could one day be subject to sanctions similar to those imposed on Russia.

The Russian invasion of Ukraine has provided China with some tough lessons. China has long rejected its neighbor's claims to sovereignty, fueling speculation that it will one day invade and annex Taiwan.

The US and other Western nations have imposed sanctions against Russia in order to stop the war in Ukraine. Sanctions include a full blocking of large Russian financial institutions, as well as measures targeting Russia's debt, and even sanctions against the families of billionaires.

Chinese officials recently held an emergency meeting with domestic and foreign banks to discuss how the state might protect its assets, should it ever face similar penalties.

The meeting that took place on April 22 was made up of officials from China's central bank and finance ministry, executives from dozens of local and international banks, and representatives from other domestic banks.

One source told the newspaper that if China attacks Taiwan, the western economies will be left out.

Russia and China are working on a payment system that will be their own.

According to the South China Morning Post, China has $3.2 trillion in foreign reserves. The head of the CSRC, Xiao Gang, asked bankers how they could protect their overseas assets, according to the FT.

Douglas H. Paal, a non-resident scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, told Insider in March that they are watching to see how effective sanctions applied to Russia might be applied to China.

China would expect the US to summon as broad a range of sanctions as possible if there is an invasion of Taiwan.

The Chinese government was right to be concerned because it has very few alternatives and the consequences of US financial sanctions are disastrous, according to Andrew Collier, managing director of Orient Capital Research in Hong Kong.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China was approached by an Insider.