Shanghai promotes innovative financial services

The recently passed provisions to promote the development of free trade (FT) accounts at Shanghai's Pudong New Area not only address the rising demand for innovative financial services, but also serve as another major attempt regarding the country's two-way opening-up, said experts.

As China's first local regulation specially promulgated for FT account businesses, the new provisions were passed on March 27, two months after it started to solicit public opinion, and will take effect on May 1.

Touching upon multinational companies' capital pool business, loans provided for overseas entities' mergers and even retail businesses under the FT account, the new provisions have demonstrated to both Chinese and foreign companies the direction of China's future financial opening-up, said Cao Xiao, head of School of Finance at Shanghai University of Finance and Economics.