(Audio in Chinese) Mainland Chinese companies should actively consider introducing international capital while carrying out projects under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). A win-win situation will be created if the firms can involve more international institutional investors in the BRI projects through loans, bonds and equity investment.

(Audio in Chinese) Risks in China’s banking and insurance industries are under control and authorities will move risk prevention and control into an even more prominent position among policy priorities. China’s financial industry must not seek only profits, or it will become a sector prone to speculation. Separately, policymakers are studying ways to make financial services, including car insurance, in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area more convenient and affordable.

(Audio in Chinese) China should early on team up with other nations sharing the goal of modernizing themselves, to create and maintain a global system that promotes modernization of all countries. Otherwise China’s own modernization will face challenges.

(Audio in Chinese) The Greater Bay Area is envisaged to serve not just trade cooperation between cities in the region, but more importantly for implementation of China’s Belt and Road Initiative. The area should take full advantage of being in the same country while enjoying two different political institutions.

(Audio in Chinese) The Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area has the potential of becoming the equivalent of the world’s existing best bay areas. However, it faces shortcomings and challenges, such as the rather fragmented and independent development of Guangdong province, Hong Kong and Macau. The flow and integration of resources and other production factors could be restrained as the three places have different political institutions, three currencies and are three different customs territories. Meanwhile, the positioning of cities in the area needs to be further clarified so that they can develop their specialized fields to complement each other’s growth.

(Audio in Chinese) Hainan and Hong Kong are not rivals and the island province does not intend to replace the city as a free trade hub. Hainan should learn from Hong Kong’s success in building itself into a free trade port, and its experience in developing duty-free shopping, entertainment and horse-racing.

(Audio in Chinese) The free flow of people and production factors will be a tricky issue in the building of the Greater Bay Area. Innovation in reform and opening-up policies is needed to make the flow of production factors within the area more convenient and effective, if not totally free.

(Audio in Chinese) Hong Kong has played a key role in different stages during mainland China’s reform and opening up over the past four decades. Hong Kong should further integrate its financial development with the growth of mainland China in seven areas.

(Audio in Chinese) Hong Kong has indeed come under pressure as mainland China further opens its financial markets and the yuan becomes more widely used around the world. However, as an open market, Hong Kong is familiar with competition, and China as the world’s second-largest economy can comfortably accommodate multiple financial centers in the country. Hong Kong enjoys numerous advantages, including a clean government, highly efficient and transparent markets, regulations with international standards, the “One Country, Two System” policy, and its proximity to mainland China. But Hong Kong also needs to adjust its positioning according to market changes, improve and consolidate its financial industry’s competitiveness, maintain the market’s credibility and attractiveness, and optimize its regulatory framework.

(Audio in Chinese) After the launch of the stock connect and the bond connect between Hong Kong and mainland bourses, the city should be positioned as a home market for China to participate in international competition. Chinese investors can get a taste of international investment rules and culture in Hong Kong, which will pave the way for regulations and practices to be introduced in exchanges in the mainland.

(Audio in Chinese) Nasdaq has had a near-monopoly in the pricing, valuation and listing of internet and biotech companies for more than a decade. But the Hong Kong Stock Exchange is now able to compete with the U.S. bourse after the former began allowing firms with dual-class share structures to float, and due to the establishment of arrangements like the Hong Kong-Shanghai stock connect.

(Audio in Chinese) Hong Kong must upgrade its financial regulatory policies to adapt to changes in how financial services are used amid technological innovation, such as mobile payments and cashless transactions enabled by digitalization. Fintech could be a new growth engine for the city to maintain its competitiveness, as mainland China becomes more open.

(Audio in Chinese) The inclusion of some A-shares in the MSCI Inc.’s global indexes will have a significant impact on not only A-shares but also H-shares. The move is expected to usher in several important positive changes to the China market, such as the participation of more institutional and international investors, more mature market rules, and more diversified product offerings.

About two-thirds of countries along the Belt and Road Initiative are have growing working-age populations, with a total of 429 million people expected to be added into the labor force in the next 15 years. The BRI’s infrastructure projects and the strengthened economies in those countries will build the basis for them to meet huge employment demands. There should be a greater appreciation of the BRI’s importance as the program may potentially create more stable economic environments.

(Audio in Chinese) China’s financial opening will help speed up technological innovation as the country increases its international perspective and learns from other nations.

(Audio in Chinese) Thanks to the advancement of software and hardware, technologies such as mobile internet, big data and greater computing capabilities will bring forth huge changes to the financial sector.

(Audio in Chinese) China may take the lead in the world in terms of business-model innovation due to its huge population and ensuing consumption needs. However, the country remains relatively weak in terms of technological innovation. China’s young people need to learn to be skeptical and ask questions before they can become innovators.

J.P. Morgan estimates that China now has about 150 “unicorn” companies – startups valued at over $1 billion each – and the number is climbing every day. The companies have a combined valuation of $1.5 trillion. Many of the firms are seeking public or private funding, which will provide important opportunities for investors in the future.