On May 21, the Roundtable on Money and Finance (Yibin Summit) and the seminar on Finance Promotes the Industrial Integration in Chengdu-Chongqing Economic Circle was successfully held online. The conference was co-hosted by the School of Finance, Renmin University of China (RUC), and the Yangtze River Economic Zone Research Institute of RUC, and organized by the International Monetary Institute (IMI), Renmin University of China (RUC). At the conference, Yang Jirui, President and Professor of Chengdu-Chongqing Economic Circle Institute of Southwestern University of Finance and Economics and former President of Chongqing Technology and Business University, and Zhang Jie, Professor of Institute of China’s Economic Reform & Development of Renmin University of China, delivered keynote speeches. Zhuang Yumin, Dean of the School of Finance of RUC and Chairman of the IMI Council, attended the conference and made a welcome speech. The meeting was moderated by Tu Yonghong, President of the Yangtze River Economic Zone Research Institute of RUC and Deputy Director of IMI.

Zhuang Yumin gave an opening speech in which she expressed her welcome and gratitude to the guests attending the conference. She pointed out that 2022 is key to building the Chengdu-Chongqing Economic Circle. Giving the full play of finance to support the real economy can improve service efficiency and performance. It is also conducive to promoting the integrated development, transformation, and upgrading of industries and achieving high-quality development of the Chengdu-Chongqing Economic Circle. She also emphasized that building Chengdu-Chongqing Economic Circle should give full play to the role of green finance, financial technology, and rural finance in promoting regional economic development. She hoped that this conference would contribute to the industrial integration of the Chengdu-Chongqing Economic Circle.

Yang Jirui delivered a speech on “Financial Support: the ‘Binder’ for the Industrial Integration of Chengdu-Chongqing Economic Circle”. He pointed out that financial support is the “binder” for the development of industrial integration in the Chengdu-Chongqing Economic Circle. The financial sector’s support for industrial integration in Chengdu-Chongqing Economic Circle is systematic. Given this, we must explore and keep pace with the reconstruction of industrial chains and supply chains in the Chengdu-Chongqing Economic Circle, focus on major projects in this region, seek new positions in the collaborative innovation and integrated development, and build a new competition and cooperation mechanism based on the exchange of financial institution managers.

Zhang Jie delivered a speech on “Impact of U.S. Integrate Circuit Alliance on China”. He pointed out that the IC industry has become a fundamental industry that determines global national competitiveness, a key area that determines the fate of China’s economic development, and a core force that interrupts China’s modernization. China has problems and shortcomings in building the whole IC industry chain and the whole innovation chain system. Based on this, he proposed three reform measures, namely enhancing sci-tech self-reliance and self-strengthening, using the interest competition between the U.S. and other countries, and forming a global IC alliance system with Russia, India, and other emerging countries.

Participating in the roundtable discussion were experts and academicians from China’s financial regulatory bodies, research institutes, and the financial industry. The panelists included Guo Jianwei, former Editor-in-Chief of China Financial Publishing House and former President of Urumqi Central Branch of the People’s Bank of China; Chen Weidong, President of Bank of China Research Institute; Zeng Gang, Director at Shanghai Institution for Finance and Development and Vice Director at National Institution for Finance and Development; Fan Xiwen, Independent Director and Special Advisor at China United SME Guarantee Corporation; Huang Ming, Vice President of Huaxi Securities; Zhao Xijun, Co-Dean, Academy of China Capital Market, RUC; Huang Jun, Vice President and Professor of School of Applied Economics, RUC; Zhou Daoxu, Director of Center for Financial Security, School of Fintech, Tsinghua University; Gao Deyou, Head of the Department of Technological Cooperation and Transfer Sichuan of Sichuan University and Dean and Professor at Yibin Sichuan University Industrial Technology Research Institute; Tie Qiang, Standing Committee Member of CPC Jiang’an County Committee and Standing Vice Mayor of Jiang’an County, Yibin City; Ren Ruihong, Vice Party Secretary and General Manager of Jintai Insurance; Ai Xingqiao, Deputy General Manager of Yibin Emerging Industry Investment Group CO., LTD.; Guo Biao, Associate Professor at the School of Finance, RUC.

He Qing, Professor at the School of Finance, RUC, Executive Editor of Economic and Political Studies and Director of the Local Finance Research Department of the IMI, RUC, made a concluding speech at the end. He said that the economic development of the Chengdu-Chongqing Economic Circle should be in line with the national strategy and ensure high-quality industrial development, of which the key is to achieve industrial integration. He then analyzed in detail the eight roles of finance in this regard, and provided a systematic and comprehensive solution to promote financial support for the industrial integration in the Chengdu-Chongqing Economic Circle.