OTC exchange to open in fall

SHANGHAI'S over-the-counter exchange for non-listed firms, the first in the Yangtze River Delta, will open in September, officials said yesterday.

The OTC exchange in Pudong New Area's Zhangjiang High-Tech Park will have a lower threshold than the ChiNext board, a Nasdaq-style market, in Shenzhen to help start-up firms raise money, said Ding Lei, vice director of the park's administrative committee.

Companies trading on an OTC market are usually small and unable to meet listing requirements for formal exchanges.

Shanghai Zhangjiang (Group) Co will launch the bourse, which aims to help start-up firms in Shanghai and other cities in the Yangtze Delta raise funds before gradually expanding nationally to promote high-tech firms.

Meanwhile, the park operator will set up a 500 million yuan (US$77.6 million) fund, approved by the country's regulators earlier this month, to loan money to employees working at state-owned firms, universities or research organizations in Zhangjiang High-Tech Park to buy stocks or options even if the organizations they work for have not yet been listed.

The park will pay the money and tax needed for the purchase of stocks or options provided individuals mortgage the assets to the fund. People can return the money to the fund after they have earned enough or their company goes public.

The policy is one of 10 initiatives launched to lure investors and support small and medium-sized firms.

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