Qianhai now appears to be the first stop for Hong Kong-invested financial 
institutions to enter the mainland, and Qianhai has made another breakthrough 
in financial innovation. On February 23, the Opinions on Providing Financial 
Support for the Comprehensive Deepening of Reform and Opening Up of the Qianhai 
Shenzhen-Hong Kong Modern Service Industry Cooperation Zone (hereinafter 
referred to as the Opinions) was officially released. With it, Qianhai will 
play a greater role in helping Hong Kong integrate into the overall national 
development, according to the Authority of Qianhai Shenzhen-Hong Kong Modern 
Service Industry Cooperation Zone.

The Opinions set out 30 financial measures, covering financial services related 
to people's livelihoods, mutual access between financial markets, the 
development of the modern financial industry, facilitation of cross-border 
trade, investment, financing, and strengthening of cooperation in financial 
supervision. More specifically, the newly-released measures include helping 
Hong Kong residents to open accounts with mainland banks, facilitating Hong 
Kong professionals to practice in the mainland, allowing financial securities 
institutions to carry out direct financing in Hong Kong, and pilot the transfer 
of private equity and venture capital shares. The 30 measures have further 
defined the path to achieving a higher and deeper level of financial opening up 
and cooperation with Hong Kong. 

"The introduction of the 30 measures marks another round of promotion of mutual 
financial market access between Shenzhen and Hong Kong," said David Liao, 
co-chief executive of the Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited 
Asia-Pacific, in a recent interview, "The measures will lay the foundation for 
the convergence of financial rules and mechanisms in the Greater Bay Area, and 
allow the exploration of new paths for the high-level opening up of the 
mainland's financial industry." 

Dah Sing Bank Shenzhen Branch, China's first bank with a dual operation 
license, was opened, and UBS Qianhai Wealth Management Co. Ltd., the first 
wholly foreign-owned wealth manager in the Greater Bay Area, was opened. DBS 
Bank became the largest shareholder in the Shenzhen Rural Commercial Bank, and 
HSBC increased its stake in HSBC Qianhai Securities to 90%. A number of 
internationally renowned financial institutions, including Standard Chartered, 
settled in Qianhai through QFLP.
    
In recent years, Qianhai's financial industry has constantly aligned with 
international standards, and Qianhai has continued to highlight its function as 
a demonstration window of the opening up of the financial industry in China. In 
terms of innovation for cross-border finance, Qianhai was the first in the 
country to implement six cross-border RMB services, namely cross-border RMB 
loans, cross-border bond issuance, cross-border RMB foreign currency cash 
pooling, cross-border equity investment, cross-border asset transfer, and 
cross-border financial infrastructure. Qianhai will continue to expand into 
other cross-border services. In 2022, Shenzhen and Hong Kong promulgated the 
first 18 measures for supporting venture capital investments in Qianhai, and 
Qianhai was to establish an international Shenzhen-Hong Kong venture capital 
cluster. The Qianhai Mercantile Exchange of HKEX Group has had a total of over 
130 billion yuan of spot transactions. So far, 247 financial institutions have 
settled in and signed with Qianhai Shenzhen-Hong Kong International Financial 
City, among which Hong Kong and foreign-funded institutions account for 30%. 

Now, the Opinions have advanced new goals for the opening up of Qianhai's 
financial industry. By 2025, Qianhai will establish and gradually improve upon 
the policy and management system to focus on the expansion and opening up of 
the financial industry and the internationalization of RMB, accomplish 
high-level mutual access with Hong Kong's financial market, improve the system 
for monitoring, preventing, and resolving financial risks, and give finance a 
more prominent role in supporting the development of the Guangdong-Hong 
Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. By 2035, a higher level of financial openness, 
based on the negative list, will be achieved, the cross-border capital flow 
will be more efficient and convenient, the financial rule system will be in 
line with the international system, and the financial environment will reach a 
world-class level. By then, Qianhai will play a greater role in leading the 
opening of the national financial industry.  

The plan is for Qianhai to put together an implementation task list for the 
Opinions to set up a task plan, roadmap, timeline, and accountability system. 
Qianhai will strive to hold a Shenzhen-Hong Kong Financial Forum, strengthen 
the Shenzhen-Hong Kong financial regulatory cooperation system, prevent 
cross-border financial risks, and promote the further opening up and 
development of Qianhai.

Source: Authority of Qianhai Shenzhen-Hong Kong Modern Service Industry 
Cooperation Zone