Recently China has seen COVID-19 outbreaks in many areas, and Shanghai has encountered the most severe and complex challenge since it started regular prevention and control. Facing the sudden COVID-19 outbreak, Shanghai International Fintech Innovation Center (Innovation Center), a model project implemented by the Shanghai Fintech Industry Alliance (SFIA), responded quickly, took targeted measures, and provided services and logistics support to keep settled financial institutions running smoothly.

Improving supporting facilities for Changjiang Pension Insurance

As a professional pension management company under China Pacific Insurance Group, Changjiang Pension Insurance has assets of over 1 trillion yuan under management, and serves over 10,000 institutional customers and over 40 million beneficiaries. After the COVID-19 outbreak, to ensure the stability of the business system and maintain customers' transaction experiences, the company launched an emergency plan at the earliest possible time, dividing the staff on the key posts on the eighth and ninth floors of Innovation Center into Group A and Group B to work in shifts under the leadership of senior executives, and requiring key staff to be on duty for 24 hours. How to properly arrange board and lodging for over 30 staff members on duty is a problem facing the company.

After learning about the situation, Innovation Center coordinated with the in-park canteen, to adjust the business model from eat-in to online ordering + contactless delivery, and extend service hours to ensure all-day food supply to the staff on duty in the park, thereby containing the spread of the virus. Meanwhile, the center decided within the shortest time to temporarily open long-term rental talent apartments to Changyang Pension Insurance and the other settled institutions, and promptly organized a team to deliver beddings and toiletries overnight to make the apartments almost up to the standards of business hotels. In this process, the center received strong support from SIG. Crowne Plaza Shanghai Fudan under SIG not only provided beddings like sheets, quilts and pillows, as well as laundry and drying services, but also sent a staff member to assist in cleaning and linen washing. Besides, to ease the tension of the staff on duty, while strictly implementing the requirements of COVID-19 prevention, the apartments opened a lounge area on the first floor, and offered various instant food and recreational facilities, to allow guests to relax after busy work in the special period so that they can devote themselves to future work in higher spirits.

Making fast response to optimize Orient Securities Backup Support Center

Amid the recurrence of COVID-19, "Orient Securities Backup Support Center" on the 11th floor of Innovation Center has played an important role in keeping the securities business running. To smooth customer service, Orient Securities has practiced the model of "headquarters + backup center + home" in COVID-19 prevention, with all its workplaces subject to independent management, the backup support center and the headquarters creating "main and backup posts" attended by a minimum number of staff, and the remaining staff working from home. These measures can minimize personnel flow and avoid cross infection.

To ensure the smooth implementation of the emergency disaster preparedness plan, Orient Securities made a request to Innovation Center for optimizing and expanding the infrastructure in the backup support center. The property office and engineering team of Innovation Center responded at the earliest possible time, assisting Orient Securities in analyzing the spatial layout, electrical load, cabinet need and information security of the backup support center, to ensure that parameter settings, permission settings, business audit and clearing & settlement are uninterrupted and orderly for 24 hours amid the COVID-19 outbreak. This has greatly facilitated the implementation of backup emergency measures of business departments, and defended the bottom line for the sound operation of core systems.

Creating a healthy and cozy environment for financial institutions

Amid the COVID-19 outbreak, other financial institutions in Innovation Center like Bank of Communications, Bank of Shanghai and Guotai Junan Securities have launched emergency mechanisms for COVID-19 prevention and control according to the overall requirements of Shanghai. While implementing the measures for personnel flow checks and health tests, and arranging staff to work on site in groups, the financial institutions have kept all the windows of Innovation Center open to enhance the natural ventilation of office areas, and flexibly planned office areas and working hours for staff on duty according to the features of zone control and independent billing of the VRV air-conditioning system. Besides, some have purchased drinking water and food earlier, prepared accommodation supplies such as military beds, sleeping bags and luggage in response to sudden enclosed management. The partners of Innovation Center performed their responsibilities as state-owned enterprises to protect the life and health safety of staff.

To create a safe, healthy and cozy working and living environment, Innovation Center has implemented prevention and control measures in such aspects as daily management, logistics support and emergency disposal, strengthened the entry & exit management of in-park buildings, and fulfilled work such as information registration, temperature measurement and health code check; has disinfected and ventilated the public areas in Innovation Center on a daily basis, and paid special attention to the safety of elevators and other enclosed spaces; and has ensured the normal operation of in-park convenience stores and cafes, and prepared sufficient supplies to meet the living needs of the settled institutions in the special period.

Innovation Center will strictly implement the arrangements of the CPC Shanghai Municipal Committee, the Shanghai Municipal People's Government and SIG for COVID-19 prevention and control, further enhance the sense of responsibility and implement measures, perform social responsibility, dispel worries of financial institutions with warm care, defend Shanghai and fight COVID-19 together with the settled institutions, thereby contributing the power of finance to the victory against COVID-19.

[Background]

Located at 135 Handan Road, Hongkou District, Shanghai, approved by the Shanghai Head Office of the People's Bank of China, the Shanghai Municipal Financial Regulatory Bureau and the Shanghai Municipal Office of Technology Innovation Center Building, Shanghai International Fintech Innovation Center (Innovation Center) went into operation on July 28, 2021. As a model project implemented by SFIA, under the guidance of relevant administrative departments, the center has pooled wisdom and strengths from all sides, closely relied on rich resources of financial institutions, given full play to roles of fintech enterprises, sci-tech companies, research institutes, functional institutions and other market entities, and initially created an overall layout of "two areas and one platform" (advanced technology demonstration area, industrial application innovation area, public service platform). Top financial institutions, including Bank of Communications, Guotai Junan Securities, Bank of Shanghai, Shanghai Rural Commercial Bank, Changjiang Pension Insurance and Orient Securities, have moved into the center. The center will foster a number of innovative fintech innovation projects with wide application and good demonstration effects, and explore a road of innovative development in line with the characteristics of the financial industry, according with the law of sci-tech progress and demonstrating the local features of Shanghai, to promote the development of Shanghai Fintech Center. In the future, based on the work requirements of the Shanghai Head Office of the People's Bank of China, the Shanghai Municipal Financial Regulatory Bureau and the Shanghai Municipal Office of Technology Innovation Center Building, under Shanghai's overall strategy for fintech development, the center will continue to promote crossover cooperation between various institutions in the fintech ecosystem.

Providing board and lodging to the staff on duty

Serving a variety of instant foods

Strengthening the entry & exit management of in-park buildings

Disinfecting public areas on a daily basis