These capital market proposals are written into the 15th Five-Year Plan for the first time, with at least eight key areas to focus on

China Securities Journal, March 16 (Reporter Lin Jian) — The full “14th Five-Year Plan” has been released, and what are the new references to the capital market included for the first time? What new ideas and highlights are there? What new opportunities will the capital market face? Caixin has summarized these points.

It is clear that many of these new references were first proposed in recent years during Central Political Bureau meetings, Central Economic Work Conferences, and Central Financial Work Conferences. These new ideas will become important focuses for the next five years. Specifically, at least ten first-time mentions and new proposals are noteworthy. The reporter has also organized eight new changes from various perspectives, from funding to products, including technological finance and the first clear goal of accelerating the construction of Shanghai as an international financial center.

1. Improve the functions of the capital market that coordinate investment and financing
2. Establish a long-term mechanism to enhance the intrinsic stability of the capital market
3. Cultivate top-tier investment banks and investment institutions
4. Increase the inclusiveness and adaptability of the capital market system
5. Expand patient capital
6. High-quality development of the bond market “Science and Technology Board”
7. Long-term capital: invest early, invest small, invest long-term, invest in hard technology
8. Accelerate the construction of Shanghai as an international financial center
9. Develop diversified equity financing
10. Explore new regulatory approaches compatible with technological innovation and high-level opening-up

Core Positioning: First mention of coordinating investment and financing

Compared to the “14th Five-Year Plan,” which only emphasized “enhancing the financing functions of a multi-level capital market,” the “15th Five-Year Plan” explicitly states the goal to “continue deepening comprehensive reform of investment and financing in the capital market, enhance the system’s inclusiveness and adaptability, and increase the proportion of direct financing.” This reflects a continuation and deepening of reforms, emphasizing reforms across the entire chain—from issuance, trading, delisting to investor protection. Notably, this is the first time “inclusiveness and adaptability” are explicitly identified as core features of the capital market system.

Many investment banking professionals told reporters that this concept will influence the positioning of various segments within the multi-level capital market:

STAR Market: During the 14th Five Year Plan: focus on hard technology; during the 15th Five Year Plan: uphold hard technology, optimize the fifth standard.

ChiNext: During the 14th Five Year Plan: focus on innovation and entrepreneurship; during the 15th Five Year Plan: introduce more inclusive listing standards.

Beijing Stock Exchange: During the 14th Five Year Plan: build the main platform; during the 15th Five Year Plan: strengthen the specialized, innovative, and new main platform.

Institutional positioning: First mention of “cultivating top-tier investment banks and investment institutions”

This phrase originated from the October 2023 Central Financial Work Conference, which first proposed “cultivating top-tier investment banks.” Its inclusion in the “15th Five-Year Plan” marks a shift from policy advocacy to strategic implementation, becoming one of the core measures for building a financial powerhouse.

Sources believe that including this in the “15th Five-Year Plan” aligns with policies aimed at deepening reforms of the capital market and improving financial services for the real economy. It signals a clear intention to strengthen and optimize intermediary institutions in the capital market and enhance core financial competitiveness, marking a significant policy deployment in the process of building a strong financial nation and high-quality development of the capital market.

Funding side: First mention of patient capital

The phrase “expand patient capital and improve policies supporting medium- and long-term funds entering the market” was included for the first time in a five-year plan. This is more specific and systematic than the previous emphasis during the 14th Five Year Plan on promoting medium- and long-term funds entering the market, focusing on creating a long-term institutional environment where funds are willing to come, stay, and grow.

The core idea of “patient capital” is to guide long-term funds such as insurance funds, social security funds, enterprise annuities, and national team funds to participate more stably, addressing some structural issues long present in the A-share market. From a funding perspective, the goal is to promote relevant institutions, especially medium- and long-term funds, to provide relatively stable incremental capital, supporting the long-term and steady development of the A-share market.

Basic system: First mention of systematic requirements for intrinsic stability of the capital market

The “15th Five-Year Plan” mentions “establishing a long-term mechanism to enhance intrinsic stability,” echoing the construction of a “Chinese-style market stability mechanism.” It emphasizes improving institutional design rather than short-term interventions to enhance the market’s risk resistance, achieving cross-cycle and counter-cyclical regulation.

Investor protection: First expansion of “trading regulation” and “investor protection” concepts

This is a clear focus of regulation. The “15th Five-Year Plan” mentions strengthening trading regulation and investor protection, whereas the “14th Five-Year Plan” only aimed to “improve investor protection systems” and “strengthen supervision of shareholder rights and related-party transactions.” The emphasis on the entire chain of regulation, especially enhancing transparent trading management, improving fairness for different investor types, and effectively protecting the legitimate rights and interests of small and medium investors, is evident.

Product side: First mention of building a high-quality bond market “Science and Technology Board”

The “15th Five-Year Plan” explicitly states the need to improve policies supporting early, small, long-term, and hard technology investments, supporting high-quality listing and bond issuance for innovative tech companies. The high-quality construction of the bond market “Science and Technology Board” is mentioned for the first time, along with efforts to develop venture capital and diversify sources of medium- and long-term venture capital, leveraging national venture capital guiding funds and merger and acquisition funds.

Specifically, the plan sets out to elevate the “Science and Technology Board” as a national strategy, supporting tech enterprises, financial institutions, and equity investors to issue tech innovation bonds, forming an ecosystem of “early, small, long-term, hard tech” financial support.

Additionally, steady development of futures, derivatives, and asset securitization is systematically included for the first time.

Tech Innovation Finance: First mention of policies supporting early, small, hard technology investments

The “15th Five-Year Plan” proposes to build a tech finance system compatible with technological innovation. It also emphasizes improving policies that support early, small, long-term investments in hard technology.

Notably, the full document exceeds 50,000 words, with over 30 mentions of “artificial intelligence,” totaling more than 1,000 words. This will have a profound impact on the capital market, highlighting AI as a core new productivity force, setting clear directions for industrial development, and influencing long-term investment themes, capital allocation, valuation of tracks, and the development of market participants.

At least 20 mentions focus on strengthening computing power algorithms and efficient data supply.

Overall, with the full release of the “15th Five-Year Plan,” many institutions believe that structural opportunities in digital technology, space economy, high-end manufacturing, new consumption, and biotech are worth long-term attention. Historically emphasized fields in five-year plans have performed well in the capital markets. The key policy directions highlighted—such as building a modern industrial system, developing new productive forces, expanding domestic demand, promoting consumption, improving people’s livelihoods, and green low-carbon initiatives—are areas to watch closely.

Opening-up and regulation: First inclusion of accelerating Shanghai as an international financial center in the five-year plan

Accelerating the construction of Shanghai as an international financial center is included for the first time; additionally, facilitating foreign investment in equity and venture capital in China is also included for the first time; exploring new regulatory approaches compatible with technological innovation and high-level opening-up is similarly a new inclusion.

Three underlying logical shifts

Caixin notes that the first mention of the “financial power” concept is the biggest change in the “15th Five-Year Plan,” setting a clear tone and serving as a premise for many new proposals. Although the keyword “finance” appears 12 times less than in the “14th Five-Year Plan,” there is a greater focus on quality and institutional development, especially within the capital market. The trend emphasizes balancing investment and financing, expanding patient capital, serving new productive forces, and establishing a feedback mechanism with returns.

The three fundamental logical shifts are becoming clearer:

1. Overall positioning change: The “14th Five-Year Plan” aimed to increase direct financing, improve basic systems, and serve the real economy. The “15th Five-Year Plan” aims to improve the coordination of investment and financing functions, positioning the capital market as a core platform for building a modern industrial system and achieving technological self-reliance.

2. Changes in intrinsic market stability: The plan explicitly proposes establishing a long-term mechanism to enhance intrinsic stability, through improving China’s unique market stability mechanisms, building a “long-term funds and investments” ecosystem, enriching cross-cycle and counter-cyclical tools, and strengthening risk control and expectation management. This shifts market stability from passive response to proactive shaping, solidifying the foundation for long-term healthy development.

3. Changes in a virtuous cycle: The five-year plan emphasizes “drawing the blueprint to the end,” guiding resource allocation across cycles. It supports technological innovation, new productive forces, and expanding high-level opening-up, while addressing external risks and domestic structural issues like building a strong domestic market, expanding internal demand, and improving people’s livelihoods. For the capital market, this promotes a positive cycle of “policy direction → capital allocation → market ecology,” fostering high-quality development.

Regulatory actions are already clear. CSRC Chairman Wu Qing stated at a press conference that during the “15th Five-Year Plan” period, the CSRC will focus on achieving qualitative improvements and reasonable quantitative growth, aiming for five new enhancements: making the market more resilient and stable; more inclusive and adaptable; higher quality and better structure of listed companies; more effective regulation and investor protection; and deeper, higher-level opening-up.

Many institutions believe that the “15th Five-Year Plan” will positively influence the capital market. Recently, Chinese assets have shown resilience amid global volatility. Despite intense fluctuations in major markets, especially in Asia-Pacific due to geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, Chinese assets, particularly A-shares, have demonstrated strong resilience. Overall, the plan’s high-level, long-term orientation and clear development goals are expected to boost investor confidence and have a positive impact on the capital market.

(Reporter Lin Jian, Caixin)