Red Star News:

My question is for the NFRA. Financing for private enterprises is a topic of strong public interest. The CPC Central Committee and the State Council have made dedicated arrangements to enhance financial support for the development of the private economy. The Private Sector Promotion Law outlines multiple provisions on this issue in its chapter on "investment and financing promotion." What measures has the NFRA taken to implement these policies? Thank you.

Cong Lin:

Thank you for your question. The NFRA resolutely implements the decisions and plans of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council, guiding and urging financial institutions to continuously strengthen their support for private enterprises and improve the quality of their services. As you just mentioned, Chapter 3 of the Private Sector Promotion Law specifically addresses the promotion of investment and financing. These provisions are not only a high-level summary of long-standing financial policies and practices, but also provide clear direction and tasks for our next steps. In line with the provisions of the law, I would like to introduce several key areas of work that we are focusing on:

First, we are continuously optimizing credit supply policies. For the majority of private enterprises, which are small and micro enterprises, we have developed a series of differentiated regulatory policies. For example, in terms of capital regulation, we have offered a discount on risk-weighted capital requirements for loans to small and micro enterprises, ranging from 15% to 25%. In terms of tolerance for non-performing loans, we have relaxed the acceptable non-performing loan ratio for inclusive small and micro enterprise loans to up to 3 percentage points higher than the overall non-performing loan ratio, in order to boost banks' willingness to lend. To address the issue of frontline staff being hesitant to issue loans, we have introduced an accountability exemption mechanism for inclusive credit lending, which protects responsible personnel who act in good faith during the loan approval process. At the same time, we urge banks to set specific targets every year for serving private enterprises, ensuring strong credit allocation. Here, I would like to share some figures with the press. Loans to private enterprises have been steadily increasing, with an average annual growth rate over the past five years that is 1.1 percentage points higher than the overall average loan growth rate. As of the end of the first quarter of 2025, the outstanding loan balance for private enterprises stood at 76.07 trillion yuan, representing a year-on-year increase of 7.41%. The outstanding balance of inclusive loans to small and micro enterprises was 35.3 trillion yuan, up 12.5% year on year. We have also introduced a policy of loan renewal without principal repayment to help reduce the financing turnover costs for enterprises. As of the end of the first quarter, the outstanding balance of renewed loans reached 7.4 trillion yuan, marking a year-on-year increase of 35.7%.

Second, we are guiding the development of an innovative insurance product and service system. We are developing specialized insurance products and optimizing services to meet the needs of private enterprises in areas such as disaster risk mitigation and loss recovery, human resources and employment, and research and development. For example, in the high-tech sector, we are launching pilot programs for mechanisms to disperse major technological breakthroughs, cybersecurity insurance, and drone insurance. For private enterprises that rely heavily on new urban residents and flexible employment groups, we focus on their specific occupational risks and strengthen protection through inclusive insurance products. In the new energy vehicle (NEV) industry, where private enterprises make up the majority, we have guided the insurance sector to introduce exclusive insurance terms and rates, and established a new insurance platform, ensuring full coverage for those who wish to be insured and guaranteed coverage for all applicants.

Third, we are collaborating to establish an information integration and sharing mechanism. Offline, we have established a coordination mechanism with the NDRC to support financing for small and micro enterprises. This mechanism promotes the direct, fast and convenient flow of credit funds to grassroots enterprises at appropriate interest rates. Through this mechanism, we have issued new loans totaling 12.6 trillion yuan to small and micro enterprises, with an average interest rate of 3.66%. Online, we are promoting the establishment of credit information sharing and comprehensive financial service platforms in multiple regions, aiming to "make data travel more while businesses and banks travel less," thereby supporting banks in issuing credit loans through data and information. As of the end of the first quarter, the outstanding balance of credit loans to private enterprises reached 18.1 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 15.4%.

Fourth, we are strengthening the risk-sharing function of financing guarantees. In collaboration with the finance department, we have promoted the establishment of a nationwide government financing guarantee system, with serving small and micro enterprises as the main policy effectiveness indicator. The guarantee fee rate for this type of business is capped at 1%, significantly lower than the level of commercial guarantee. As of the end of the first quarter, government financing guarantee institutions had provided direct financing guarantees totaling 1.88 trillion yuan for small and micro enterprises, marking a year-on-year increase of 11.5%.

Next, we will consistently uphold the "two unwavering commitments" and focus on the implementation of the Private Sector Promotion Law. We will continue making efforts in areas such as regulatory guidance, policy incentives, mechanism promotion and institutional guarantees, and implement targeted measures for private enterprises of different industries, sizes and development stages. We will work together with relevant parties to pool efforts and jointly promote the financial industry in providing more efficient, convenient and sustainable financial services for the private economy. Thank you.

Xing Huina:

Today's press conference is hereby concluded. Thank you to our speakers and the media for your participation. Goodbye.

Translated and edited by Liu Jianing, Gong Yingchun, Li Xiao, Yan Bin, Xu Kailin, Zhang Rui, Wang Xingguang, Wang Wei, Fan Junmei, Liu Qiang, Li Huiru, Wang Qian, David Ball, and Jay Birbeck. In case of any discrepancy between the English and Chinese texts, the Chinese version is deemed to prevail.