Industrial robots are operating on an intelligent production line in a smart manufacturing enterprise in Yangzhou, East China's Jiangsu Province. Photo: VCG

 

The People's Bank of China, together with six other authorities including the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the National Development and Reform Commission, jointly released a guideline on enhancing financial support for advancing new industrialization on Tuesday.

The guideline urges tailored support to boost advanced, smart and green manufacturing, while curbing inefficient, "involution-style" competition. By 2027, a mature financial system with diverse tools and tighter coordination among credit, bonds, equity and insurance is expected to meet manufacturers' funding needs and support broader industrial upgrading.

"This guideline shows China's push to use financial tools to drive new industrialization and boost manufacturing strength," Dong Shaopeng, a senior research fellow at the Chongyang Institute for Financial Studies at Renmin University of China, told the Global Times on Tuesday. "It comes at a critical time to support structural upgrades and high-quality growth."

The guideline states that for breakthroughs in key technologies such as semiconductors, industrial mother machines, and foundational software, banks are encouraged to provide long-term financing. Enterprises that achieve core technology breakthroughs will gain fast-track access to listing, bond issuance, and merger and acquisition deals. First-of-a-kind equipment and materials are also eligible for enhanced financial support.

The guideline calls for attracting long-term, patient capital to boost tech commercialization. It encourages monthly financing road shows and listing incubation for key industrial chains, and urges private capital toward early-stage, small-scale, long-term, and hard-tech investments. Venture capital institutions are encouraged to support start-ups through direct investment or equity-for-service models, while high-level talent-led ventures will receive bundled support such as credit and financial advisory services.

The guideline also calls for improving financial services for traditional manufacturing to support industrial transformation. Banks are encouraged to increase lending for the sector's high-end, smart and green upgrades. Companies can update intelligent or eco-friendly equipment through financial leasing, with related debt eligible for securitization. Listed firms are encouraged to pursue sector consolidation and industrial upgrading via overall listing or private placements.

The guideline calls for improving the quality and efficiency of sci-tech finance to support the growth of emerging industries and the forward-looking deployment of future sectors. Financial institutions are encouraged to develop diversified, relay-style service models, increase sci-tech lending, and boost investment and underwriting of innovation-focused bonds. The use of small and medium-sized enterprises specialization evaluations will be expanded to enhance credit services. 

Moreover, an "innovation points" system will be rolled out nationwide, alongside efforts to standardize intellectual property pledge financing. Eligible companies in fields such as next-generation information technology, foundational and industrial software, intelligent vehicles, new energy, new materials, high-end equipment, geospatial information, commercial aerospace, biomedicine, and cybersecurity will be supported in accessing multi-tier capital markets.

The guideline calls for enhancing the accessibility of cross-border financial services to support high-level two-way opening-up. It encourages optimizing financial products and services for foreign trade in the manufacturing sector, launching targeted initiatives to support SMEs in going global, and facilitating current account transactions to ensure secure and efficient cross-border settlements. The use of the yuan in cross-border trade will be expanded to better meet enterprises' needs, while policies supporting trade settlement facilitation for high-quality firms will be improved.

The guideline calls for boosting digital finance to better integrate the digital and real economies. 5G and industrial internet projects are eligible for medium- and long-term loans, and can also seek funding via leasing or securitization. Banks are encouraged to offer one-stop digital platforms, while big data and artificial intelligence should be used to improve services for SMEs.

The guideline also calls for stronger joint risk controls, urging banks to align with industrial policy, monitor fund use, prevent misuse, and step up disposal of bad loans through restructuring or write-offs.

"The policy redefines finance as a core driver of industrial growth," Dong said. "It's no longer just about providing capital, but about embedding funding, risk control, and tailored tools to guide industries toward high-end, smart, and green development.

"In the past, industries chased money and waited for subsidies," he noted. "Now, financing is built into the system from the start, forming a closed loop involving tech, industry, and finance.

"The focus on tech, green and digital finance shows China's dual strategy — upgrading traditional sectors while fostering future industries," Dong said. "With aligned policy, capital and talent, China is laying a fast, resilient path for industrial growth."

China has stepped up bond and equity financing to support new industrialization, the Xinhua News Agency reported. As of end-June, medium- and long-term loans to the manufacturing sector were up 8.7 percent year-on-year, outpacing overall loan growth. In the first half, A-share fundraising for industry and IT firms reached 148.8 billion yuan, ($20.55?billion) up 51.6 percent year-on-year earlier, Xinhua reported.