BEIJING, Oct. 23, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- On a golden autumn day in Beijing's Financial Street, the atmosphere of the Annual Conference of the Financial Street Forum (FSF) 2026 is palpable everywhere. Along the roads, the street-side themed installations and the clear, eye-catching slogan "Building an Open, Collaborative, and Inclusive Ecosystem for Global Financial Development" stand out prominently, with blue-themed flags lining the streets.

The golden horse topiary, complemented by red, purple, and yellow floral arrangements, adds a vibrant touch to this district renowned for its concentration of financial institutions.

On a plot of land of less than 2.6 square kilometers, over 1,900 financial institutions have taken root, gathering 220,000 financial professionals, with the scale of financial assets exceeding 150 trillion yuan ($22.47 trillion), accounting for one-third of the national total. This area serves not only as an important vehicle for promoting financial development in five major areas, but is also hailed by the industry as a window into China's financial reform and opening-up.

Fresh policy signals

At the opening ceremony of the conference on Monday, top Chinese financial regulators announced a slate of targeted policies, including a pilot initiative to allow overseas financial institutions to participate in yuan trading in China's interbank foreign exchange market as part of broader efforts to expand financial opening-up.

"Economic globalization is the prevailing trend, and opening-up and cooperation represent the shared aspiration of all. As always, China's financial industry remains open-armed, steadfastly advancing its opening-up agenda, fostering a level playing field where Chinese and foreign institutions compete on the same stage and interact constructively, together painting a vivid picture of win-win cooperation," Ding Xiangqun, head of the National Financial Regulatory Administration, said at the opening ceremony.

"Foreign institutions are encouraged to leverage their strengths - such as in wealth management, elderly care and health, and green finance - to participate in more business pilots, and achieve greater development by deepening their presence and investment in China," Ding said.

Beyond the fresh signals from Chinese officials, the development of the FSF itself underscores the reform and opening-up of China's financial sector. Since its launch in 2012, which marked the 20th anniversary of Beijing's Financial Street, the FSF has held 15 editions, developing from a platform for industry exchange and dialogue to a national-level forum. Since 2020, about 400 policies, industry standards and contracts have been released or signed during the event. It has also advanced the establishment of more than 10 financial institutions and facilities.

The forum's global reach continues to expand. This year's FSF gathered more than 400 distinguished guests from over 40 countries and regions, extending its sub-venue to an African country for the first time, and launching the first-ever three-way linkage among Beijing, Hong Kong, and London.

Multiple representatives of foreign-funded institutions spoke highly of the forum, expressing hopes for stronger financial cooperation with China.

"Financial markets are more connected than ever… That raises the value of good global governance," Vincent Mortier, global chief investment officer of Amundi Asset Management, told the Global Times during the forum. "As Europe's largest asset manager, we see platforms like the Financial Street Forum as part of this architecture: they let regulators, central banks and investors build the trust that cooperation depends on."

At this year's annual conference, Swiss financial giant UBS independently hosted a sub-forum for the second year, with the theme of "Global Capital, Open Innovation: Creating Growth and Lasting Impact."

"UBS has maintained a strong presence in the Chinese mainland for more than 35 years. Our sustained investment in capital, technology, talent and risk management reflects our own long-term commitment to this market and enables us to remain a dependable partner here through market cycles. For us, long-term capital is not only something we mobilize for our clients. It is a principle we put into practice," Iqbal Khan, president Asia Pacific and co-President Global Wealth Management at UBS, said at the sub-forum.

Global network

Since its official launch in 1993, Beijing's Financial Street has made great strides in contributing to the city's role as a national financial management center. Over the past decades, Financial Street's opening-up and cooperation have evolved from a single node into a global network. Financial Street has established a regular interaction mechanism with the City of London, and has signed memoranda of cooperation with Casablanca Finance City, the Hong Kong Financial Services Development Council, and the Abu Dhabi International Financial Center, respectively.

With the rapid development of emerging technologies represented by artificial intelligence (AI), the bidirectional empowerment between finance and technology has become a central topic in driving sustainable economic development, while opening up new opportunities for the Financial Street to deepen international cooperation.

"The Financial Street Forum provides a platform for communication and cooperation among financial institutions, technology companies, and industrial capital. The deep integration of finance and technology is not just about providing funding for tech enterprises; more importantly, it is about establishing a financing mechanism that is aligned with the laws of technological innovation," Sun Dengke, co-founder and CFO of Beijing Galbot Robotics Co, told the Global Times.

The FSF also seeks to further expand international cooperation under various initiatives such as the Belt and Road Initiative. A sub-forum themed "Upholding Openness and Win-Win Cooperation to Foster New Dynamism for High-Quality Belt and Road Cooperation" was held this year.

At the sub-forum, Retselisitsoe Adelaide Matlanyane, minister of finance and development planning of Lesotho, said that over the past 15 years, this forum has been at the heart of China's financial reform and transformation - a shift toward a dynamic, open, and integrated system that is ever more closely connected with the rest of the world.

Beijing's Financial Street, China's fin-tech, and Chinese manufacturers have the scale and the experience that Africa needs, Matlanyane said.