Shanghai

Shanghai, the metropolitan city at the mouth of the Yangtze River, leads the country in the financial industry.

Official statistics showed that the added value of Shanghai’s financial industry reached 578.2 billion yuan ($83.24 billion) in 2018, contributing about 17.7 percent of the city’s total GDP.

The city boasted 1,605 registered financial institutions by 2018 and nearly 30 percent were from overseas.

Since the launch in September 2013 of the China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone, the FTZ has put forth 110 financial innovation policies, among which 20 have been promoted nationwide.

Shanghai Party secretary Li Qiang said at the Lujiazui Forum in June 2018 that finance is the "most active element" in Shanghai's development. The city has "strong financial DNA" and shown unique advantages in the financial industry.

According to an action plan released by central regulators in January 2019, Shanghai will develop itself into a world-leading financial hub in line with China’s economic power and the renminbi’s international standing by 2020. A legal, innovative, highly efficient, transparent and open financial system is expected to be in place by that time.