A high-level Chinese government meeting led by President Xi Jinping has called for stronger oversight and security in fintech, state media reported, as the sector has been hit hard by a regulatory crackdown.
The government’s actions have hit some of China’s biggest tech companies, wiping out hundreds of billions of dollars in market value since last year.
However, as the Chinese economy has been battered by Covid lockdowns, the government has rolled out a range of supportive measures, including calls for “predictable” technology regulation.
“Regarding large payments and fintech platform firms, Xi called for efforts to improve regulations, strengthen institutional vulnerabilities, ensure the security of payments and financial infrastructure, and protect against and mitigate potential systemic financial risks,” read one reading of Wednesday’s meeting by the official Xinhua News Agency.
The Chinese leader “also called for better supporting these companies to serve the real economy,” Xinhua said.
Officials at the meeting discussed promoting the “healthy development” of fintech companies, she added, saying “China will tighten oversight of financial holdings and internet financial services.”
Investors have been heartened by similar statements from the Chinese government in recent weeks, with some taking them as signals that the tech crackdown is finally easing.
Hopes also rose this month as dozens of new video games were approved, and tech stocks rose on reports that authorities are completing a cybersecurity probe into ride-hailing giant Didi.
But regulators this month denied reports they were discussing the possible revival of Ant Group’s failed IPO, which would have been the world’s largest IPO at the time.
Ant Group — the payments subsidiary of e-commerce giant Alibaba — canceled its 2020 stock offering at the last minute.
Alibaba was later fined $2.75 billion for alleged unfair practices.
Ant Group is expected to apply for a financial license later this month, Bloomberg News reported Wednesday, citing unnamed people familiar with the matter.
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