Why is mainland China giving Hong Kong a chunk of land in Qianhai? It’s betting on using the zone as test bed for China’s financial reform and opening up

Authorities will position Qianhai as window to reform and open up nation’s financial services sector, senior official says

Hong Kong’s status as a global financial hub is viewed as a key part in ensuring the zone offers high quality professional service

4-MIN READ4-MIN

Shenzhen’s Qianhai economic zone, which is set to expand to eight times its original size. Photo: Getty

Published: 3:06pm, 9 Sep 2021Updated: 5:00am, 10 Sep 2021

Hong Kong businesses will be allowed to use at least a third of new land being set aside in neighbouring Shenzhen as part of the Qianhai economic zone’s mammoth expansion, senior Beijing officials have pledged as they threw their support behind the project.

The mainland Chinese authorities also promised on Thursday to speed up the introduction of a new law to offer investors better protection and pour more resources to build the zone as an international legal expertise and arbitration hub.

People’s Bank of China deputy governor Pan Gongsheng also suggested that more would be done to promote Qianhai as a test bed for reform and opening up of the country’s financial sector.

“We will position Qianhai as the window of reform and opening of the nation’s financial services sector. Together with Hong Kong’s global financial hub status, we can offer high-quality services,” Pan said at a rare joint press conference held in Beijing with Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macau ministers attending via video conference.

Senior Beijing officials are joined by representatives from across the Greater Bay Area for a rare joint press conference on Thursday. Photo: RTHK

For nearly 1½ hours, the mainland officials pored over the details of the Qianhai and Hengqin plans approved by the State Council earlier this week.

Under the Qianhai plan, revealed on Monday, the economic zone that was set up in 2009 will expand eightfold, from 14.9 sq km (3,706 acres) to 120.6 sq km.