Jinan: a pioneering force in fintech innovation in China

The local government of Jinan, capital of Shandong province, held a news conference on June 15 to highlight the city's role as a national pilot zone for fintech innovation in the capital market.

Li Hong, deputy head of the Jinan financial regulatory bureau, said that the city is the center of politics, economy, science, education, culture and finance in Shandong.

Policy support

In November 2021, with the approval of the State Council, eight government departments, including the People's Bank of China, issued the Overall Plan for the Construction of the Science and Technology Innovation and Financial Reform Pilot Zone in Jinan, Shandong Province.

In March, Jinan released the Implementation Opinions on Accelerating the Development of Fintech, proposing the goal of turning Jinan into a hub for fintech, innovative application, technology research and development and digital transformation of financial institutions.

Financial resources

In 2022, the added value of Jinan's financial industry reached 102.98 billion yuan ($14.46 billion), a year-on-year increase of 7.6 percent. The balance of domestic and foreign currency loans and deposits exceeded 2.5 trillion yuan.

As of the end of 2022, Jinan had approximately 130,000 financial practitioners and nearly 900 financial institutions.

Industrial foundation

Jinan's software and IT service industries have in recent years undergone significant development, and this has in turn driven R&D in areas such as big data, cloud computing, blockchain and artificial intelligence.

The city is currently home to a large number of fintech R&D institutions and IT companies like Inspur.