The 2026 Lujiazui Forum officially opened in Pudong, Shanghai, on June 17th. Running for two days, this year’s forum is themed “Financial Development and Cooperation Under the Global Governance Initiative: New Visions, New Challenges and New Opportunities”. As China’s top national financial event with far-reaching global influence, it gathers more than 70 Chinese and foreign guests from financial regulators, international institutions and capital market leaders, releasing key policy signals on leveraging finance to foster new productive forces and expand institutional opening-up.
Co-hosted by the People’s Bank of China, the State Administration of Financial Regulation, the China Securities Regulatory Commission and the Shanghai Municipal People’s Government, the forum has rotating chairpersons including the head of the State Administration of Financial Regulation and the Mayor of Shanghai. Its eight plenary sessions cover seven core topics, among which technology finance stands out as the highlight of this year. A special session dedicated to tech finance has been arranged to conduct in-depth discussions on full-cycle financial services for tech firms, empowering hard-tech enterprises via multi-tiered capital markets, and two-way support for the tech industry through Chinese and foreign capital, clarifying the long-term guideline of channeling more financial resources into high-tech sectors.
One year has passed since the rollout of the “1+6” supporting policies for Science and Technology Innovation Board (STAR) Market reform unveiled at last year’s forum, which have delivered tangible market outcomes. Sectors including integrated circuits, new energy equipment and artificial intelligence have benefited directly, driving double-digit growth in investment in high-tech manufacturing. Shanghai financial authorities disclosed at a pre-forum briefing that a full package of detailed rules on tech finance will be released during this forum, covering tech credit, long-term equity investment, technology insurance, risk-tolerant assessment for early-stage small and medium-sized tech ventures, and STAR Market expansion. The new policies aim to build a full-chain financing system catering to start-ups, growth-stage and mature tech enterprises, easing financing difficulties and high financing costs for small and medium-sized tech firms.
High-level two-way financial opening-up constitutes another core agenda. The forum will explore deepened financial coordination between Shanghai and Hong Kong, upgrade interconnection mechanisms including Stock Connect, Bond Connect and Swap Connect, expand the pilot scope of free trade accounts, facilitate cross-border trade, investment and financing, and strengthen Shanghai’s role as a global financial hub. Representatives from overseas central banks and international financial organizations are present to exchange ideas on pathways for cooperation in global financial governance reform, sustainable finance and cross-border capital stability. Amid sluggish global economic recovery and volatile geopolitics, the forum conveys China’s consistent commitment to two-way financial opening-up.
Market participants are closely watching regulators’ remarks at the forum regarding liquidity management, capital market reforms, real estate risk resolution and CNY internationalization. Industry institutions note that the Lujiazui Forum has long served as the bellwether of annual financial policies. The intensified focus on tech finance signals sustained policy support for sectors such as computing power, high-end manufacturing and biotech in credit, equity and bond financing, boding well for tech and high-end manufacturing sectors listed on the A-share market.
In parallel with the forum, an international seminar on financial rule of law and a centralized signing ceremony for key industrial financial projects will be held. A batch of cross-border tech investment and green finance cooperation projects will be inked by financial institutions, tech enterprises and industrial parks from home and abroad. The forum will conclude on June 18th, when heads of multiple central ministries will roll out the latest financial reform measures to shore up stable macroeconomic growth and industrial upgrading in the second half of the year.