At the opening of the 2026 Global Investors Conference in Shenzhen on May 28, themed "Capital Markets and Innovative Growth—China's Opportunities Under the 15th Five-Year Plan," BANK OF CHINA President Zhang Hui delivered a keynote address. He outlined his vision for the bank to serve as the "chief partner" for global investors seeking to share in China's new development opportunities.
President Zhang Hui presented several key insights on this theme. First, he emphasized the need to align with the times and major trends to seize new opportunities presented by China's high-quality development. He highlighted a historic surge in technological innovation, with major original achievements emerging across fields from deep space and deep sea exploration to transportation, energy, artificial intelligence, and embodied AI. The continued opening of China's capital markets was also underscored; by the end of 2025, overseas institutions held bonds in the interbank market worth 3.46 trillion yuan, demonstrating strong global confidence in RMB-denominated assets and signaling significant future growth potential. Furthermore, he pointed to the ongoing release of benefits from China's massive market, noting that during the 14th Five-Year Plan period, per capita GDP rose from $10,000 to over $13,000, with total retail sales of consumer goods surpassing the 50 trillion yuan mark.
Second, he discussed building ecosystems and empowering innovation to fully support the cultivation and growth of new quality productive forces, which has yielded substantial results. During the 14th Five-Year Plan period, China's banking sector has consistently enhanced its capability, intensity, and level of financial support for technological innovation, actively meeting the financing needs of tech companies at various stages of their life cycles. "Sci-tech finance is not a solo performance by banks but a symphony played by multiple parties. It requires building an ecosystem platform for the efficient connection of capital, technology, and markets," Zhang Hui stated. He introduced that BANK OF CHINA has innovated a collaborative service model by integrating resources, jointly launching the "Pilot Protection Financing" service, which now covers over 80% of national and ministerial-level pilot platforms. The bank supports the national venture capital fund system, co-participating with China Investment Corporation and China International Capital Corporation in establishing the National Venture Capital Fund for the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region. It also collaborates with the National Council for Social Security Fund to promote the establishment of sci-tech innovation funds, continuously increasing equity investment support in hard-tech sectors.
Third, he highlighted leveraging strengths and building bridges to fully support the remarkable achievements of "Investing in China." As a pioneer in China's financial sector "going global," the country's banking industry has consistently promoted high-level opening-up through high-quality financial services. Zhang Hui pointed out that globalization is inherent in BANK OF CHINA's DNA and a cornerstone of its century-long operation. In particular, regarding the RMB payment and clearing system, BANK OF CHINA operates 18 RMB clearing banks in total, serves as a direct participant in the Cross-border Interbank Payment System (CIPS) for 46 institutions, and has expanded its network to include over 700 indirect participant banks.
Fourth, he focused on optimizing services and deepening cooperation to fully advance "Investing in China" to a higher level. "Looking ahead, BANK OF CHINA is committed to becoming the 'chief partner' for global investors entering China," Zhang Hui declared. He outlined the bank's goals to become a "value hub" for global asset allocation, a "fertile ground" for empowering the growth of sci-tech innovation enterprises, a "safe harbor" for cross-border capital flows, and a "vibrant link" for cross-border investment collaboration. BANK OF CHINA aims to work with global peers to explore innovative practices in financial products and tools, infrastructure connectivity, and facilitation of cross-border investment and financing, thereby contributing to the high-quality development of the Greater Bay Area.
In conclusion, Zhang Hui summarized, "Amid the tides of global transformation and technological revolution, the value of openness becomes increasingly prominent, and the consensus on cooperation is ever more precious. BANK OF CHINA will continue to play its bridging role, walking hand in hand with all parties to better enable technological innovation to empower a better life for humanity, to ensure China's opportunities better benefit global partners, and to contribute greater financial strength to the sustainable development of the global economy."
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