February 4th, 2016

(From qq.com) Feb. 4, the T20 Qianhai International Financial Forum with "Global Financial Governance and Innovation" as the theme was held on January 27-28 in Shenzhen. The forum was organized by the Shenzhen Municipal Government, World Economy and Politics Institute of CASS, Shanghai Institute of International Studies, Chongyang Institute of Finance of Renmin University and the British Royal Institute of International Studies. Co-sponsors include administrative bureau of Qianhai-Hong Kong modern service cooperation zone, Qianhai financial holding company and Qianhai international capital management school. Shenzhen Mayor Xu Qin presided over the opening ceremony.

 

The forum aimed to build a communication platform to seek financial innovation, realize mutual benefit and development, pool wisdom from all walks of life, create a new financial governance framework and provide better proposals to G20. T20 is one of the most important peripheral meetings of G20. It is understood that this is the only T20 Financial Forum.

Guangdong Provincial Party Secretary Ma Xingrui said in his speech that finance is the core and the lifeblood of the modern economy. As the Launchpad of China's reform and opening up drive, Shenzhen constantly pushes forward financial reform and innovation and builds up a growth pattern of "finance + technology", "finance + logistics", "finance + culture", and "finance + industry “. A multi-tier capital market system with Shenzhen Stock exchange as the core has been formed. In 2015, the added value of Shenzhen financial sector has surpassed 250 billion yuan, accounting for 14.5% of GDP. The city's financial sector accounted for about 1/4 of its tax income. Shenzhen will rely on Qianhai’s platform to deepen cooperation between Shenzhen and Hong Kong in the financial sector, further opening up the financial sector and building the city into an international center of financial innovation.

Executive Vice Chairman of APECF Xiao Wunan made the closing speech at this summit. He stressed that there had been indications that China has begun to advance from a manufacturing hub to a rising financial power, and the question is how its financial power can be built? First, a sophisticated legal system is on the top of the agenda, as rule of law preludes the emergence of any financial powerhouse. In the meantime, financial system should also be developed on the base of morality as its spiritual core. For the operation of a sound financial system, credit and leverage are the very essence. In terms of credit, it's not a technical system but a moral system at its core; In retrospect, greediness breeds the 2008 financial crisis, so morality constitutes the foundation of all financial powers. Moreover, China needs to adopt an innovative path to achieve the status as a global financial powerhouse. The 2008 financial crisis reveals the true face of financial system especially the greedy side of "financial oligarchy". With the advent of the internet age, the traditional boundaries existing among different financial governances, management models, or distribution of interests have all been shattered. Shenzhen Qianhai has prioritized modern service industry in its development plan, which provides a good example for the rest of the nation to carry out financial reform. At the end of speech, Xiao Wunan pointed out, to build China into a formidable financial power, we need to account for a more ruthless reality. China is confronted with significant bottlenecks in terms of resource, population and environment. China also has tens of millions of poor people, so the goal for financial development should focus on serving the real economy. Only through strengthening the real economy can China achieve its ambition to become a well-off society as well as accomplish the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.

Experts of think tanks from 16 countries and regions gathered to discuss the status and reform of international monetary system, development and cooperation of multilateral financial institutions, China's financial reform and FTA, financial development and innovative economy, etc. They have also made proposals on financial innovation of the Qianhai area.

Other participants include: Executive Director of Institute of Finance with Renmin University Wang Wen; Director of International Economic Research Department of the Royal Institute of International Affairs Paula Suba Qi; Member of Standing Committee, Secretary-General of Shenzhen Guo Yonghang; Member of Standing Committee, director of administrative committee of Qianhai and Shekou Tian Fu; Vice president of Asian development Bank Zhang Wencai; Country and regional CEO of EBRD Matthias Romani; Director of macroeconomic research for ASEAN plus 3, Yoichi; Former Italian economy and Finance Deputy Minister, Chairman of Italian Entrepreneur Federation Mr.Mario; Director of Peterson Institute of international economics, Adam Posen; CASS member, former central Bank monetary policy Committee member Yu Yongding; Deputy director of National Development Research Institute of Peking University, Member of the Central Bank Monetary Policy Committee Huang Yiping; Former CPPCC member, member of the advisory committee for Qianhai and Shekou FTA and Qianhai cooperation zone, former president of Merchants Bank Ma Weihua and representatives from relevant think tanks and other institutions from home and abroad, responsible personnel from Shenzhen municipal government and over 300 corporate representatives from Qianhai Shekou FTA.