The Shanghai Equity Exchange opened on Feb. 15 with 19 listings. Attending the ceremony and striking the opening gong was Yu Zhengsheng, Secretary of CPC Shanghai Municipal Committee, Han Zheng, Vice-Secretary of CPC Shanghai Municipal Committee, Mayor of Shanghai delivered the welcome remarks. Meanwhile, Tu Guangshao, Member of the Standing Committee of the CPC Shanghai Municipal Committee and Vice Mayor of Shanghai, unveiled the Shanghai I&F OTC Private Equity Fund Management Co., Ltd. CPPCC Vice Chairman and Pudong New District Governor Jiang Liang, Secretary General of the Municipal Government Hong Hao, Vice Secretary General of the Municipal Government Jiang Zhuoqing were also among attendees of the occasion. Attendees from the Shanghai International Group (SIG) include Chairman Ji Xiaohui, President Shao Yaliang and Vice-president Yang Dehong.

During his speech, Han Zheng pointed out the exploratory establishment of equity exchange market in Shanghai as a crucial measure to fulfill the nation’s strategic plan of building Shanghai into an international financial center. He also emphasized the significant implications that the official launch of the Shanghai Equity Exchange has over the enhancement of the Shanghai’s financial market system, the actualization of the function that finance sector should serve the real economy, the elevation of independent innovative capabilities and the promotion of innovation-driven restructuring. Han Zheng further stressed that Shanghai would pay special attention to the completion of all market-construction-related work and uphold its function of serving the real economy and the development of small& medium-sized enterprises under the supervision of the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) and other national bodies. Shanghai would proactively seek effective means to combine its markets with a uniformly regulated over-the-counter (OTC) market in a bid to strengthen its regulation over markets and expand market functions as well as to increase Shanghai’s market influence by providing focused service towards the Zhangjiang National Innovation Demonstration Area and progressive service towards the Yangtze River Delta and other regions pivoting upon Shanghai’s financial infrastructure.

In a post-ceremony interview, Tu Guangshao, Vice Mayor of Shanghai, attributed the presence of demand as being the key to the Shanghai Equity Exchange’s establishment. He also pointed out strong canonicity as a defining characteristic of the Exchange. The establishment and launch of the Exchange, as Tu Guangshao further explained, is necessitated by the implementation of national strategic arrangement, by the developmental needs of the financial services sector, as well as the actual needs of small & medium-sized enterprises of a platform for equity exchange. As such, stringent control measures would be implemented over market entry and transactions to ensure canonicity while providing innovative services adhering to the country’s laws and regulations in aspects ranging from designing the exchange system to the prevention of market risks.

Vice President of SIG and Chairman of Shanghai Equity Exchange, Yang Dehong, expressed in a plaque issuing ceremony that, as a majority shareholder of the Shanghai Equity Exchange, SIG has fulfilled its functions of ensuring the soundness of the financial services of Shanghai in terms of the promotion of the Shanghai Equity Exchange and establishment of the equity exchange center. Relying on the Shanghai Equity Exchange’s role as a platform connecting a uniformly regulated over-the-counter (OTC) market, SIG will serve high-tech start-ups and other small and medium-sized non-public companies based in Shanghai, the Yangtze River Delta, and other regions, forge and improve main-stream financial industrial chain in a bid to enhance Shanghai’s capability to serve the real economy, support and serve the establishment of Shanghai as an international financial center.