The Shanghai office of the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) has just issued a slew of measures to boost the city’s standing in the global fintech sector.
PBOC’s Shanghai office has issued 40 measures targeting a total of eight key goals, including:
- The development of a fintech ecosystem with global influence;
- Deepening application of fintech;
- Promoting the research and development of emerging technologies;
- Continuous optimisation of financial services;
- Strengthen fintech cooperation in the Yangtze River Delta area;
- Reinforcing risk management;
- Improving regulatory effectiveness;
- Enhancing training of personnel as well as cooperation and exchanges.
Shanghai will encourage financial institutions within its jurisdiction to pursue innovation or adoption of new fintech trends, including smart networks, intelligence customer service, robo-advisors and the use of artificial intelligence for management of financial risks.
The blockchain is another area of focus, with Shanghai pushing for banks as well as key supply chain companies to adopt the technology for supply chain financing purposes, in order to improve the ability of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises to access affordable funds.
Other measures include the establishment of fintech-related industry funds and venture capital funds, in order to drive the creation of a multi-tier capital market and expand fintech investment; the creation of industry standards and stronger measures for the protection of financial information.
