New Deloitte Global Chair @2023 SIFAC meeting

On 7 June, the 2023 Shanghai International Financial Advisory Council (SIFAC) meeting was convened in Shanghai. At the invitation of Shanghai Mayor Gong Zheng, Anna Marks , Deloitte Global Chair, attended the meeting as a member of SIFAC during her first visit to China since taking office on 1 June, and engaged in high-level dialogue with leaders from Shanghai, including Party Secretary Chen Jining and Mayor Gong Zheng, on the construction of Shanghai’s international financial centre. Deloitte China CEO Patrick Tsang and Deloitte China Eastern Region Managing Partner Charlotte Lu also attended the meeting. 

Deloitte Global Chair Anna Marks and Deloitte China CEO Patrick Tsang at the meeting site

SIFAC was established in June 2019, as a platform for high-level dialogue, connecting top leaders from Shanghai government with their peers from major financial institutions worldwide, providing intellectual support to accelerate efforts to build Shanghai into an international financial centre. This meeting was chaired by Mr. Zhou Xiaochuan, SIFAC Convener and former Governor of the People’s Bank of China. 

Leaders from Shanghai Municipal government, Shanghai Headquarters of the People's Bank of China, Shanghai Bureau of China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission, Shanghai Bureau of China Securities Regulatory Commission, Shanghai Municipal Financial Regulatory Bureau and other municipal government departments or agencies were present at the meeting, including Gong Zheng, Deputy Secretary of the Shanghai Municipal Party Committee and Mayor of Shanghai; Xie Dong, Vice Mayor of Shanghai; Ma Chunlei, Secretary-General of Shanghai Municipal government; Wang Ping, Deputy Secretary-General of Shanghai Municipal government. Mr. Chen Jining, member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Secretary of the Shanghai Municipal Party Committee, met and hosted a banquet for all SIFAC members after the meeting.

10 heads from major international financial institutions, financial markets and consultancies, including Deloitte, New Development Bank, City of London Corporation, LCH Group, HKEX (Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited),etc., attended the meeting and exchanged their views on topics about the development of Shanghai as an international financial centre.

In her speech themed “Towards the greater success of Shanghai as an international financial centre”, Marks shared thoughts on how Shanghai could accelerate its development as an international financial centre in three strategic areas: high-level opening-up, risk management and a green recovery. 

Continue to enhance efforts to increase openness and strengthen capacity for financial asset allocation

Interest rates in many countries are at their highest levels for years. Meanwhile, debt crises and food and energy price fluctuations in emerging markets are evident. Against this backdrop, Shanghai can help bolster the real economy and thrive as one of the international financial centres by forging closer connections with global markets and allocating financial assets effectively. To inspire confidence among foreign investors and encourage their participation in China’s capital market, it is suggested to facilitate cross-border transactions and currency exchange, develop more diverse solutions for global RMB-denominated financial assets as well as tools to hedge international derivatives risk, and strengthen services capabilities to support the financial markets.

More proactive in mitigating and managing financial risks

Recent high-profile failures present takeaways for Shanghai: strengthening market regulation and supervision should consistently be prioritized. It is also important to build trust and transparency in the financial system and protect rights of financial consumers and investors, maintaining their confidence. In addition, emerging technologies should be adopted in financial services to drive innovation while risks should be identified, analyzed and mitigated. With the establishment of the National Financial Regulatory Administration, China should be better positioned to protect the interests of investors and financial consumers, allowing Shanghai to play a bigger role in developing mechanisms for international regulatory cooperation.

Increase collaboration to address climate change and shape a green future

The global economy is working towards a green recovery. China’s commitment to “carbon peak” and “carbon neutrality” is expected to generate significant market opportunities with companies seeking support to implement the transformation. Shanghai can take additional steps to play a pivotal role in creating global green finance instruments and driving ESG investments, including promoting the alignment of global green finance standards by working with both Chinese and EU regulators, launching innovative financial instruments tailored to the China market and sharing the practice with international counterparts, as well as developing ESG metrics, a standard mechanism for reporting, and rating standards.

Deloitte Global is committed to playing our part to address climate change, and ushering in the green recovery. Our WorldClimate strategy engages a wide range of stakeholders to create low-carbon operations and optimise disclosures while empowering clients to achieve net zero goals.

“Deloitte Global is supporting Deloitte China in making greater contributions to the development of Shanghai as an international financial centre, such as investing in talent development, sharing views on building a world-leading environment for international businesses, and facilitating exchanges between Shanghai, Hong Kong and other major international financial centres.” -- Anna Marks, Deloitte Global Chair 

Deloitte China’s continuous commitment to the development of Shanghai as an international financial centre has been well recognized and appreciated by leaders from Shanghai. With our locally rooted and globally connected knowledge and capabilities, Deloitte China will continue to be a trusted advisor for Shanghai to reduce risk and become more open and future-ready.