City's financial hub ambitions on track

Officials call for greater cooperation between finance, innovation and technology sectors to maintain momentum for development

Shanghai is now in the final stretch of the race to transform itself into a financial hub with global influence, said Shanghai mayor Ying Yong during the two-day Lujiazui Finance Forum that ended on June 21.

"Great efforts have been made in Shanghai as the city aspires to become an international financial center by 2020, as stated in the 13th Five-Year Plan for the city (2015-20). Great achievements have been made, too. Shanghai is now home to various financial services, from equity to bond, from futures to money market, from currency exchange to gold, from insurance to shipping financing," he said.

Ying pointed out that the financial sector has also become one of the largest contributors to the city's economic growth. According to data from the National Bureau of Statistics, financial services contributed to 17 percent of the city's GDP in 2016. There are currently 1,515 financial institutions based in Shanghai.

Also present at the forum, an annual event that focuses on issues regarding the financial sector and global economic growth, was Zheng Yang, director of the Shanghai Municipal Financial Service Office.

During his speech, Zheng said the development of Shanghai's financial sector is in line with the city's ambitions of becoming a global technological innovation hub by 2030, noting that innovation and scientific development are major drivers for growth in the financial sector.

"Without support from financial services, scientific innovations would be undernourished, and without scientific innovations, the development of financial services will be sluggish. In Shanghai, many financial institutions are collaborating with technological innovators," said Zheng.

Li Yang, a researcher with the national financial and development research lab at the China Academy of Social Sciences, echoed this point.

"In the past, when people talked about collaboration between the finance and tech sectors, it was mainly about financing technological development projects. Today, it is a different story. Technologies are reforming financial services in almost every aspect, and a reformed financial institution can in turn better support economic growth. It is high time for financial institutions to take advantage of technology," he said.

In recent years, many financial institutions in the city have embraced financial technology, or fintech, to improve their service efficiencies, added Zheng. Financial market infrastructures in Shanghai, such as interbank trading and cross-border payment systems, have been developing quickly too, turning Shanghai into an exchange hub for many financial product categories such as renminbi-denominated gold.

Zhou Xiaochuan, chairman of the People's Bank of China, said during the forum that the renminbi cross-border interbank payment system (CIPS) - it will become fully operational by the end of this year - will make it easier for banks, especially international ones with branches and regional head offices in China, to finance their global clients.

According to the Global Financial Centres Index which ranks world cities based on their importance in the financial market, Shanghai is rising quickly as a regional financial center and making an increasing impact in the world.

Five years ago, Shanghai's ranking on the index was outside the top 20. The city took 16th place in 2016 and climbed three spots to 13th this April.

Mark Yeandle, director of Z/Yen, a London-based commercial think-tank that compiled the index, said that the authorities in Shanghai may review the opening-up of the markets and improve the macro environment in order to make the city an inclusive and livable place that is attractive to global talent.