City aims to become regional financial hub

Jinan, the capital of Shandong province, is working to accelerate the development of a regional financial center and promote the integration of finance and technology, financial and high-tech industries, as well as finance and public entrepreneurship.

The financial industry has become an important engine to promote the economic development of the city.

"Jinan is trying to explore new ways for the development of its financial industry and build a regional financial center and regional science and technology innovation center," said Wang Wentao, Party chief of Jinan.

Last year, revenue from the financial industry amounted to 54.2 billion yuan ($8.45 billion), accounting for 9.4 percent of the total GDP in Jinan. The industry also paid 10.8 billion yuan in tax, accounting for 12.4 percent of the city's total taxes.

Jinan has so far developed three major locales for its financial industry.

The Jinan financial business center is home to the regional headquarters of 19 banks and 31 insurance companies.

Jinan's central business district, another gathering area for the financial industry, is home to the operations of 65 international financial institutions and financial services companies, and 450 other financial companies, with a total annual turnover of more than 70 billion yuan.

The newly developed Hanyu Valley Financial Street, with a planned area of 4.1 million square meters and a total investment of 26 billion yuan, is designed to be a national financial innovation demonstration zone. It has already attracted more than 30 financial institutions, such as the Industrial Bank and Qilu Securities.

Foreign banks have also been attracted by the city's excellent business environment. In recent years, HSBC, Standard Chartered, East Asia Bank and other foreign banks have established operations in Jinan.

Jinan's securities industry has also developed rapidly. Last year, 57 new companies in securities, futures, mortgage and private equity funds were established in the city. The city's securities industry achieved a total turnover of 1.61 trillion yuan in 2014, an increase of 81.72 percent from 2013.

The city also actively promotes financial industry reform. For example, the Shandong financial asset trading center opened last year and launched nine innovative financial products.

Jinan actively promotes the listing of enterprises. The total number of listed companies in Jinan has reached 30, raising a total of 90 billion yuan on the stock markets. There are 39 companies listed on the "new third board" - an over-the-counter market for growth enterprises - ranking first in the province and sixth nationally.

At present, Jinan has 31 small loan companies, with combined registered capital of 4.2 billion yuan. The city is also committed to promoting the development of private financing institutions. It has approved 22 private capital management companies, with a total of 1.7 billion yuan of registered capital.

juchuanjiang@chinadaily.com.cn