China has certainly not become a capitalist society. The nation's people on the whole work for very little pay. Their economy that used to be largely communist still is. The factors that have changed over the past decade or so is the reduction in the dependence upon the agricultural sector. Industry and consumer goods have become the nation's key to higher prosperity. The definition of a capitalist society involves the ability to raise capital on the financial markets and being able to trade on a free market basis.
However the banking system which has seen leading western banks move into being able to operate in China have freed the country into a slightly better position, however the only people benefiting from the capitalist notion are the large companies and wealthy individuals who in turn feed off the hard work of the employees that make the goods. The workers get paid little who help the bosses of the Chinese corporations their capital.
Banks in China have been affected by high levels of bad debts by lending money to people around the world including China, which also means that whilst the bad debt write-downs which have been publicised around the world the Chinese also at some stage will feel the credit crunch. The government of China surely will have realised that the effects caused by Western banks and would have resulted in the curbing of lending to individuals.
The theory of capitalism itself involves no government bail outs of banks, and once banks are broke they should not be given state hand outs in an attempt to boost the failing bank's liquidity. Therefore China has not become a capitalist society as the foundations are that private lending is done through the bank of China and western banks have little liquidity and face a scenario where the lending of banks is low as there own liquidity has been affected through the global credit crisis. Also by definition state intervention by banks in handing out loans to individuals will also mean that China has not become a capitalist society.
The small number of people who benefited from the country were the landowners and the rich who were in place during the 1980's. The poor people who probably represent over 90% of the population of China are in effect at the heart of the crisis as they will struggle to make ends meet in a socialist feudal type of economy. Much overhaul of the banking system is needed and from a social and economic view before China is to be considered a Capitalist society.