Resolving Financial Disputes: China to establish its first financial court in Shanghai

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02:22

In its business hub Shanghai...China will set up its first financial court. The court will be at the intermediate level, focusing on a series of civil and administrative disputes relating to finance. They include loans, insurance, securities, and those involving financial authorities.

HENRY TAN NPC DEPUTY "It is absolutely necessary for us to have a financial court as our companies are going global and we should have more specialized legal staff to handle financial lawsuits."

No one knows this better than Henry Tan. The Hong Kong businessman is a first-time legislator, giving suggestions on drafting and amending laws and regulations. He suggested that the financial court in Shanghai allow more assessors from Hong Kong, to match international practice.

HOU NA BEIJING IS THIS DONE? "The decision echoes legal professionals' calls to set up a court that is able to better handle finance-related lawsuits. During the panel discussions, law makers suggest that the court should be able to handle more internet-related financial lawsuits."

A report by China's top court says the number of contract disputes involving online shopping rose sharply between 2015 and 2017. Courts heard 9,328 contract disputes related to online purchases in 2016, up by 285 percent year-on-year. Lawmaker Ren Xianliang identifies financial cases as the area needing particular attention.

REN XIANLIANG, MEMBER NPC STANDING COMMITTEE "More internet-related financial cases are emerging and they involve huge amounts of capital. We should explore new ways to regulate the financial market when we are seeing an ever expanding digital economy."

The draft will be put to vote on Friday.

More legal explanations on the decision will be released by the Supreme People's Court.