Sibos conference opens in China for the first time

Just in time for the Year of the Dragon, Sibos, SWIFT’s annual financial services conference, exhibition and networking event, is taking place in China for the first time.

By moving from Toronto to Beijing, SWIFT hopes to strengthen its position as a global provider of secure financial messaging services, as the city is home to most of China’s largest companies and most of the Fortune Global 500 companies worldwide.

In a welcome video released ahead of the opening of the Sibos conference on Monday, Wang Ying of the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Local Financial Regulation says Beijing is the only city in China to benefit from programs that are part of its pilot free trade zone , nicknamed the “Two Zones.” The pilot program, launched in 2020, allows Beijing to test a wide range of innovative measures and keep pace with current international economic and trade rules.

“Beijing is taking the lead in opening up China’s financial sector and is closely connected to global financial networks,” she says. “Hosting Sibos in Beijing will definitely help advance communication and collaboration in the financial community around the world.”

Two Zones has resulted in the launch of more than 10 specific reform plans covering around 500 measures – resulting in almost 50 policy measures being implemented at the national level. Over 19,000 projects have been registered in the two zones and more than 12,000 have already been launched.

The China Financial New Development Index Report 2023 said that Beijing not only has a favorable environment for financial innovation and development, but also makes significant achievements in areas such as fintech applications, green finance development, promoting inclusive finance and pension innovation has finance and the development of digital finance.

The Year of the Dragon is considered a prosperous year in which innovation and business can flourish, while the theme of this year’s Sibos conference: “Connecting the Future of Finance” makes Beijing the ideal place for debate with its proactive approach to promoting innovation Future of finance with all its challenges and opportunities.