More innovative technology financing being prioritized

Experts said strengthening innovation in technology finance can provide more targeted and efficient financial support for tech-related private enterprises, easing financing difficulties and promoting commercialization and industrialization of technological achievements.

Emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, big data and cloud computing are reshaping the underlying logic of finance, driving product innovation and creating new financial models to meet diverse funding needs, said Luo Laijun, vice-chairman of the All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce, at a forum in Beijing on Tuesday during the Annual Conference of Financial Street Forum 2025.

With the establishment and improvement of a comprehensive credit evaluation system for private enterprises, financial institutions can now offer more accurate credit support to first-time and trustworthy private firms, further easing financing difficulties and costs, Luo said.

Ma Jun, a member of the Standing Committee of the Beijing Municipal Committee of the Communist Party of China, urged financial institutions to clear financing bottlenecks and use diversified instruments — from credit and equity to bonds and insurance — to deliver targeted and customized financial services that continuously nurture stronger private enterprises.

Xing Ziqiang, chief China economist at Morgan Stanley, said on the sidelines of the forum that the financial sector has played a strong role over the past year in driving new quality productive forces and improving investor returns.

Xing said fiscal expansion, monetary easing and reform measures introduced since last September have boosted market confidence and given entrepreneurs clearer expectations.

"In an era that values both security and development, development remains the top priority, and policymakers will make timely adjustments according to changing circumstances," he said.

With the continuous emergence of newly listed companies representing new quality productive forces — coupled with China's growing emphasis on dividends and corporate governance reform — foreign investor confidence in Chinese assets has been recovering, buoying China's capital and financial markets, including Hong Kong, to serve as a bridge amid global geopolitical tensions, Xing said.

Looking ahead, he expects China's industrial policy to shift its focus from scale to quality and efficiency, curbing excessive local subsidies and disorderly competition while advancing a unified national market. Coordinated fiscal and financial policies, he added, will offer greater opportunities for private enterprises.

Tian Xuan, dean of the National Institute of Financial Research at Tsinghua University and associate dean of Tsinghua University PBC School of Finance, said financial institutions still face challenges in supporting private sector growth, including limited financing channels, low direct financing ratios and information asymmetry.

Tian called for improving credit evaluation through big data and blockchain, expanding multitiered capital markets to boost equity and bond financing, and strengthening the social credit system to promote information sharing among government agencies while tying private-sector support to financial institutions' performance reviews.

Tian said it is important to innovate technology credit products, such as intellectual property-backed loans, to fully leverage intangible assets; apply big data and AI technologies to improve credit approval efficiency and service quality; build integrated technology-finance platforms offering financing, incubation and consulting services; develop venture capital for technology startups in the seed and early stages; and deepen the integration of technological innovation and capital markets by supporting qualified tech enterprises to list and raise funds across multitiered capital markets.

Nowadays, many banks, beyond offering credit services, are also collaborating with subsidiaries within the group and external institutions to provide enterprises with consulting, resource matching and IPO-related services.

Gene Ma, chief representative for APAC and head of China research at the Institute of International Finance, said banks are shifting from relying on interest margins to earning more non-interest income by providing broader services. This helps them better support companies, strengthen relationships and improve loan pricing through a deeper understanding of client operations.

Ma also cautioned that banks need to avoid conflict of interests that might arise in such arrangements. For example, advising on merger and acquisition deals might influence the credit decisions. Proper risk controls and firewalls should be put in place between commercial and investment banking operations.