Financial sector a 'key beneficiary' in Bay Area

The nation's grand plan to develop the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and turn Shenzhen into a national pilot demonstration area will create greater demand for financial services, promoting the industry's development, according to scholars and experts.

Guo Wanda, executive vice-president of the Shenzhen-based think tank China Development Institute (CDI), said on Thursday the two mega projects will have three major effects on the southern China region: the creation of a city cluster, collaborative innovation, and a greater flow of elements.

"These three effects will exert an impact on the region's financial sector as demand for infrastructure construction in the city cluster will rise, and industries will go through a period of transformation and upgrade, both requiring financial support," Guo told a CDI-hosted forum in Shenzhen.

"It's possible that a 'Bay Area financial center' will come into being."

The region can also enjoy the benefits brought by preferential policies on financial innovation and the industry's further opening-up, Guo said.

To ensure a greater flow of elements, he highlighted the importance of creating an integrated business environment in the region.

Reforms have to be carried out on the Chinese mainland so that its system and rules can be in line with Hong Kong's, he said.

Wang Xiaojin, director of the OTC (over-the-counter) market office at the Shenzhen Stock Exchange, said the Shenzhen stock market is playing an active role in promoting the Bay Area to become a world-class innovation and technology hub.

The Shenzhen bourse has a high proportion of private and high-tech listed companies with strong innovation capabilities, she said.

By the end of last year, 1,679 private enterprises had been listed on the Shenzhen bourse, accounting for 79 percent of the total. Among them, national-level high-tech enterprises have taken up 52 percent so far.

Traditionally known as the country's manufacturing hub, the Bay Area is making big strides in financial development.

Besides Hong Kong, other cities in the region are emerging as key players in the industry.

According to the latest China Financial Center Index, Shenzhen and Guangzhou rank third and fourth respectively among 31 major Chinese mainland cities in comprehensive financial competitiveness. The first and second slots are taken up by Shanghai and Beijing respectively.

The report, published by CDI, based its results on 94 indicators in four aspects — financial industry performance, the strength of financial institutions, the scale of the financial market, and the financial ecological environment.