THE added value of the financial industry in Futian District in the first quarter amounted to 34.033 billion yuan (US$5.09 billion), contributing 77.3 percent to the district’s gross domestic product (GDP), according to statistics released by Shenzhen Futian District Statistics Bureau last month. The figure implies that the financial industry in Futian District is developing at a steady pace and has gradually become the key industry of the district. Futian District, Xicheng District in Beijing and Shanghai Pudong New Area are dubbed the top three financial areas in China. Other statistics provided by Invest Shenzhen Futian show that in 2014, the added value of the financial industry of the district exceeded 100 billion yuan for the first time and the number increased to 125.315 billion yuan in 2016, which accounted for 35 percent of the district’s GDP and 43.6 percent of the total added value of the financial industry in Shenzhen. Major domestic financial institutions such as China Merchants Bank, Ping An Group, CITIC Securities Co., China Southern Asset Management Co., and Bosera Asset Management Co., are all settled in Futian. A preferential financial ecological environment encourages financial and technological innovation in Futian District and a number of innovation programs have drawn nationwide attention this year. Xiangmihu Financial Technology Index, the first stock index based on China’s fintech industry, was recently listed on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange. (A Ding) ? | 