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G20 ministers and bank governors meeting showcases Chengdu’s rise as regional leader
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THE G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting will kick off in Chengdu, the capital city of Sichuan Province, tomorrow. The two-day event will witness a grand gathering of the world’s most influential financial ministers, governors of central banks, heads of international organizations including the World Bank, IMF and OECD. In Chengdu, the most prosperous city in western China, they are to talk about the world’s most important economic issues.
It will be the highest international meeting ever held in the city. Chengdu, reputed to be the birthplace of the world’s earliest form of banknotes, has impressive achievements in the finance service. The city’s combined deposit in RMB yuan and foreign currencies topped 3 trillion yuan (US$449 billion) by the end of 2015. The finance sector of the city registered 125.4 billion yuan in production value, standing as the most competitive financial center in China’s central and western region, and the sixth largest nationwide.
Chengdu is in the midst of building itself into a major regional financial center, and the upcoming G20 meeting is expected to advance Chengdu’s ambitious goals. Specifically, the city expects the meeting to introduce new ideas for reforms, innovation, transformation and upgrading. Chengdu’s financial industry has seen rapid growth in recent years as the development of a comprehensive, stable and effective financial system has taken shape ranging from banks, securities to insurance businesses.
As for the city’s achievements in financial service, Chengdu is now home to 259 financial institutions dealing in banking, insurance and securities business. It also houses nearly 900 emerging financial companies, which provide small loans, financing guarantees, investment funding and third-party payment services. According to Chengdu Financial Service Office, Chengdu is home to more than 500 financial service companies, which include the global “big four” accounting firms as well as the world’s top law firms and asset evaluation companies. The presence of those financial service firms have given Chengdu a competitive edge to lead in China’s central and western areas in the financial sector.
On the road toward building an innovation hub, a creative city and a globally influential center for startups, Chengdu also aims to create a better environment for innovation and entrepreneurship. Plans include increasing investment in science and technology and promoting faster commercialization of science research results, according to recent guidelines issued by the municipal government to promote and improve the infrastructure of entrepreneurship. These guidelines also include a pledge to further simplify administrative management by cutting red tape on innovation, increasing funds to meet these objectives, and unveiling reforms to attract more professionals. These reforms are set to relax the rules on local residential certificates for foreign scientists, innovators and entrepreneurs. In addition, Chengdu is accelerating the construction of innovative incubators. It’s also prioritizing the development of hacker spaces, which are community-operated venues where people share their interest in tinkering and working on creative projects. Places like In Teahouse in Thinkzone, Perfect Café in Tianfu Software Park and Optics Valley Startup Café in Jingrong Town are already creating a comfortable environment for the birth of great ideas. They complement existing incubators like Jinrong Town in Pi Town, Thinkzone in Chengdu Hi-Tech Industrial Development Zone and Tianfu Innovation Center. There are also plans to convert colleges, idle factories and lands into space for more incubators.
Chengdu Science City in Tianfu New Area is another important project for Chengdu to nurture innovation. Zhang Yi, chief of the Science Development, Publicity and Planning Bureau of Tianfu, said that the first batch of clients such as Nokia Global Technology Center and China Telecom Cloud Computing Center are set to settle in the Tianfu Finance Center of Chengdu Science City.
Thanks to the innovation and entrepreneur-friendly atmosphere that’s now being built in Chengdu, by 2020 the city is expected to have more than 100,000 technology and innovation-oriented companies. Among these, 2,000 are expected to be high-technology companies with over 2 trillion yuan in industrial output.
As the gateway to the Silk Road Economic Belt and Yangtze River Economic Belt, Chengdu is going to bring full play of its role as the leader in the western region.
To date, Chengdu has attracted 271 Fortune Global 500 companies to set up branches in the city. Chengdu is also home to 15 foreign consulates, and has established sister-city relationship with 31 cities. Chengdu is also the fourth city in China that allows 72-hour visa-free transit. Besides, the China-Europe express train that links with Chengdu and Polish city of Lodz is now the fastest train between China and Europe, together with a sophisticated logistic network that boasts 89 international airlines that stretch from North America, Europe to Middle East and Oceania.
After being the host city for this year’s G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting, last year’s Fortune Forum and World Chinese Entrepreneurs Convention, Chengdu is under the global spotlight. With a commitment to carrying out an innovation-driven strategy, Chengdu now aims to become a leader in western China in economics, technology, culture, transportation and international exchange.
For the next step, Chengdu will seize the opportunity of “One Belt, One Road” initiative and fasten its pace of becoming a a gateway to the Euorpe through the “Chengdu-Europe Plus” strategy.
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