Strengthening finance for socio-economic growth and people's needs

Editor's note: Liu Xiaochun is the vice president of the Shanghai Finance Institute. The article reflects the author's opinions and not necessarily the views of CGTN. It has been translated from Chinese and edited for brevity and clarity.

The central financial work conference explicitly proposed to accelerate the construction of a strong financial nation, where the significance of financial work in the national economy was elevated to an unprecedented level.

Expediting the construction of a strong financial nation entails intensifying reform efforts.

First and foremost, China must sort out the relationship between macro-control and financial regulation and establish a comprehensive financial regulatory system. It is essential to clarify the central bank's functions and organizational structure, with a dedicated focus on macro-control, prudent macro management, and monetary policy functions.

The National Administration of Financial Regulation and the China Securities Regulatory Commission should regulate all financial activities, eliminating every regulatory gap or blind spot, leaving no room for regulatory arbitrage and illegal financial activities. Local party committees should set up financial commissions and financial work commissions, while financial regulatory bureaus of local governments should specialize in regulatory functions, emphasizing local responsibility for mitigating financial risks.

Besides, China must do a good job in five major areas, fintech, green finance, inclusive finance, pension finance, and digital finance, in order to meet the ever-growing financial needs of economic and social development and the people.

The keywords in these five areas represent the direction of China's high-quality economic development and the transformation of economic growth patterns. The focus should be placed on technological innovation, market-oriented technological application, green development, common prosperity, the needs generated in the future aging society, and the future development models in the digital era.

Furthermore, China must promote high-level financial opening up and ensure national financial and economic security. This conference highlighted "strengthening the competitiveness and influence of the Shanghai International Finance Center and consolidating and elevating Hong Kong's status as an international financial hub", which has drawn much attention.

The Shanghai International Finance Center should be the international financial center for the renminbi, the center for cross-border renminbi settlement, the international investment and financing center for the renminbi, the international transaction center for the renminbi, and the pricing center for renminbi assets. As a well-established international financial hub, Hong Kong should play a bidirectional role, acting as a bridge for foreign capital to enter China and for Chinese capital to enter the global market.

Lastly, China must prevent and resolve financial risks. Currently, the primary domestic financial risks revolve around the real estate industry, local governments' hidden debt, some small and medium-sized financial institutions, financial crimes, and financial corruption. To prevent and resolve these risks, the conference laid particular emphasis on balancing power and responsibility, focusing on addressing issues through institutional means.

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