Beijing's financial sector reports remarkable progress during 14th Five-Year Plan period

Beijing made significant progress in the financial sector during the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-25), offering robust backing for the capital's high-quality economic development, senior officials said on Friday.

Over the past five years, the financial sector's value added accounted for around 20 percent of Beijing's GDP, rising from 680.41 billion yuan ($98.4 billion) at the end of 2020 to 815.42 billion yuan by the end of 2024, said Zeng Linfeng, executive deputy director of the Office of the Financial Commission of the Communist Party of China Beijing Municipal Committee.

"The steady growth of the financial sector provided strong financial support for the capital's stable economic development," Zeng said at a news conference held in Beijing.

Chao Kejian, head of the Beijing Municipal Branch of the People's Bank of China, highlighted the improvements in the credit structure during the 14th Five-Year Plan period.

He added that more credit had been directed to emerging industries, small and micro enterprises and technology-driven sectors, while real estate lending accounted for a smaller share, down by seven percentage points. "This is an encouraging trend," Chao said.

Moreover, the Beijing Stock Exchange, China's third national stock exchange, was established during the same period.

The Beijing Stock Exchange saw steady and healthy development over the past five years, rolling out products and services such as the BSE 50 Index, margin trading, securities lending and stock market-making, said Hou Fengkun, deputy head of the Beijing Bureau of the China Securities Regulatory Commission.

"By the end of September, the exchange had 277 listed companies, with a total share capital of 4.598 billion shares and a combined market value of 91.746 billion yuan," Hou said.

Meanwhile, Zhu Yansheng, head of the Beijing Regulatory Bureau of the National Financial Regulatory Administration, said financial services related to people's livelihoods continued to improve, with personal pension contributions reaching 22.31 billion yuan.

"Beijing rolled out an inclusive health insurance program at the start of the 14th Five-Year Plan period. Over the past four years, more than 17 million people signed up, and the renewal rate for 2025 reached 80 percent. The program became an important part of the city's efforts to build a more comprehensive healthcare protection system," Zhu said.

Additionally, Beijing further opened up its financial sector over the past five years and made it easier for foreign residents to access financial services.

Notably, Beijing established dedicated payment service zones for overseas visitors at airports and became the world's first city to support tap-and-go access with major international bank cards on its urban rail transit system, improving payment convenience for foreign visitors, Chao said.

"These efforts will make Beijing more open to the world and strengthen its position as a major international consumption hub," Chao added.