China Securities Regulatory Commission convenes symposium to shape the 15th Five-Year capital market plan and deepen reform and opening

The China Securities Regulatory Commission held a thematic symposium in Beijing, chaired by Party Secretary and Chairman Wu Qing, to gather input from listed companies, industry institutions, intermediaries and members of the China Capital Markets Society on the priorities, approaches and measures for the capital market component of the 15th Five-Year plan, in the context of implementing recent central policy guidance. Discussion focused on further reforms to issuance and listing, refinancing and mergers and acquisitions, alongside improvements to policy execution mechanisms. Proposals also included stronger support for listed companies to become larger and stronger, including encouraging higher dividends and share buybacks and increasing the role of institutional investors in corporate governance, while pushing securities and fund firms to build “first-class” investment banks and investment institutions and raising the quality and competitiveness of accounting and law firms and other intermediaries. Additional priorities covered expanding the A-share product and service ecosystem, including indices, ETFs and derivatives, and improving the convenience of cross-border investment and financing to advance institutional opening; Wu highlighted reforms of the STAR Market and ChiNext as a key lever for deeper, integrated investment and financing reforms and a new round of capital market reform and opening.