Bruno Le MAIRE: Continuous progress has been made in opening the Chinese financial sector despite the Covid-19 crisis

On June 10, the 13th Lujiazui Forum (2021), co-hosted by the Shanghai Municipal People’s Government and the People’s Bank of China, the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission and the China Securities Regulatory Commission, opened in Shanghai. Mr. Bruno Le MAIRE, French Minister of Economy, Finance and Recovery, sent a video message for the conference.

Bruno Le MAIRE stated that over the last six years, China has gradually opened its financial market to foreign investors. 2020 was a key year, with continuous progress in opening the Chinese financial sector despite the Covid-19 crisis. The removal of foreign ownership caps in many financial sectors and the removal of some of the investment quota for foreign investors are milestones. The potential of China’s capital market is enormous. Easing cross-border financial transactions is beneficial to both Chinese and foreign actors: it favors asset diversification and enables a more efficient channeling of funds between China and global markets. In the longer run, lower barriers in the free use of renminbi (yuan) and a deeper integration of China into global capital markets will foster the renminbi’s internationalization.

Financial reform is key to supportinghigh quality economic development. It will be much needed to facilitate green investments in order to achieve the 2030 emission peak and the 2060 carbon-neutrality targets announced last year by President Xi. France is also a pioneer when it comes to green and sustainable finance, and the cooperation between China and France could go even further in the area of green and sustainable finance.