BEIJING, July 7, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- On July 3, the Digital Finance Forum of the Global Digital Economy Conference 2025 was held at the Beijing Banking & Insurance Business Park. The forum was hosted by the Shijingshan District People's Government of Beijing Municipality and Asia Digital Group. As a key event of the Global Digital Economy Conference, it brought together governments, financial institutions, and experts from countries including the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, Japan, and Finland to engage in in-depth discussions on the theme of "Industry-City Synergy, Advancing the Future Through Digital Technology". 

The forum was attended by prominent leaders, including Zeng Linfeng, Deputy Director of the Beijing Municipal Financial Service Office, Deputy Secretary of the Financial Work Committee of the CPC Beijing Municipal Committee, and Director of the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Local Financial Regulation and Supervision; Wan Long, District Mayor of Shijingshan District People's Government and Deputy Secretary of the CPC Shijingshan District Committee of Beijing Municipality; Li Wenhua, Deputy District Mayor of Shijingshan District People's Government and Member of the Standing Committee of the CPC Shijingshan District Committee of Beijing Municipality; Zhang Yuhang, Level II Bureau Rank Official of the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Economy and Information Technology; Yu Jie, Deputy District Mayor of Shijingshan District People's Government of Beijing Municipality; and Zhu Dongfang, President of Asia Digital Group, along with other distinguished guests.

In the address of District Mayor of Shijingshan District People's Government Wan Long, he elaborated on Beijing's commitment to establishing an internationally influential digital finance hub, which will inject strong momentum into the building of a global benchmark city for digital economy. As one of the central districts, Shijingshan is deeply implementing its industrial transformation and development strategy, working to accelerate the creation of a new growth engine for digital finance in western Beijing. The district is becoming a focal point for the national banking and insurance industry's data hub and the National FinTech Evaluation Center. It is also driving the launch of the Data (Digital) Asset Circulation Innovation Center and expediting the development of the city's first Comprehensive e-CNY Pilot Zone. Furthermore, a district-level FOF with a total scale of 3 billion yuan has been established to introduce fresh capital to foster and develop new quality productive forces.

Uniting Expertise and Effort to Shape the Future of Digital Finance

In his opening speech, Former Deputy Governor of the People's Bank of China Li Dongrong stated, "China's digital finance market is the largest in the world, with mobile payments having made a significant leap from 'one card in hand' to 'mobile payments everywhere'. FinTech companies are accelerating their expansion abroad, leveraging their technological capabilities. Innovations like DeepSeek are also helping small and medium-sized institutions bridge the 'technology gap'. It is vital to adhere to the principle of technological neutrality, establish a robust data security framework, promote collaborative innovation in products and services, and strengthen international cooperation in the future."

Former Vice Chairman of the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission Chen Wenhui initiated a new phase of transformation in the financial industry with the "xᴬᴵ" revolution formula. According to him, as AI evolves from a tool to an infrastructure, the geographic advantage of bank branches is being dismantled by dynamic data profiling. He referenced 133 large model implementation cases to caution the industry. AI performance and cost will reach a tipping point by 2025, but the risk of algorithmic discrimination urgently requires global ethical governance. He also disclosed that banks are investing 53% of the funding into financial AI projects, with deep decision-making areas still in need of breakthroughs.

In his speech, Wu Qiong, Chairman of the Investment Bank of Deutsche Bank Asia Pacific, explored the core of the RWA revolution, explaining how blockchain is dismantling the traditional limitations of physical assets. By overcoming scalability challenges, "frozen assets" such as renewable energy and real estate have now achieved on-chain segmentation and compliant circulation for the first time.

In the following keynote speech session, participants engaged in an in-depth discussion on "Creating a New Ecosystem for Digital Finance and Transforming the Industry-City Integration Landscape".

Senior Partner at IBM Consulting Fan Bin proposed that the banking industry should horizontally integrate AI across functions, vertically optimize the efficiency of specific scenarios, and leverage hybrid cloud and AI automation to resolve the challenges of technology migration. The ultimate goal is to establish an "AI Factory" model, where AI is deeply embedded into the strategic core, alongside building a robust risk management culture and a systematic retraining mechanism for all employees.

Sakai Satoshi, Financial and Tax Counsellor of the Economic Section at the Embassy of Japan in China, presented the core framework of digital finance: FinTech = Finance + Technology, driving a trillion-dollar market transformation. He highlighted the development of four key digital payment systems, including credit cards, debit cards, electronic money, and barcode payments, and the integration of industry and finance through local revitalization policies and fintech activities.

CEO of Ficolo, Seppo Ihalainen, introduced the "Energy First" strategy and launched the EMOP® platform to enable the intelligent scheduling of renewable energy procurement and power assets. The company is also developing AI-ready infrastructure that integrates liquid-cooled microgrids and waste heat recovery technologies. Their Ecogrid Energy Park in Pori, Finland, builds a symbiotic ecosystem by combining modular plots with regional heating, integrating renewable energy and industrial heat usage. This model has already been introduced in China and is actively expanding with more partners for implementation.

Prof. Ma Tiejun, Personal Chair of Financial Computing (Risk Modelling), and Joint Director of the Edinburgh Centre for Financial Innovations of the University of Edinburgh Business School, proposed a three-dimensional framework linking academia, industry, and education. With Europe's leading AI research capabilities—especially in natural language processing, ranked first globally—he has partnered with financial institutions such as NatWest and abrdn to create an industry-research laboratory focused on investment AI assistants and trustworthy AI fintech. In parallel, the university offers four master's programs in fintech policy, computational financial mathematics, and related fields, training 180 interdisciplinary talents annually. The curriculum deeply integrates cutting-edge areas such as risk modeling and behavioral analysis.

Jiang Haofang, President of China UK Business Development Centre in China, introduced the "Dual Circulation of Capital and Industrial Chain" strategy. This strategy aims to create a triangular ecosystem by leveraging China's manufacturing chain and scenario innovation as its foundation, UK fintech and green standards as a bridge, and the UAE's 3.5 billion-person market as a hub. It focuses on establishing a photovoltaic energy storage export base in the Dubai Jebel Ali Free Zone, benefiting from policies such as zero tariffs and 100% foreign ownership. The initiative also links to DP World's global logistics network of over 80 ports. Additionally, it seeks to strengthen the "Shanghai-London Stock Connect" mechanism and the issuance of green sovereign bonds, marking a new chapter for Chinese companies to list in the UK.

A Brilliant Debut: Building a New Paradigm for Sci-Tech Financial Innovation with Excellence

On the day of the event, the Beijing Banking & Insurance Business Park was transformed into a dynamic stage for digital finance, where a range of innovative achievements and service solutions were officially launched.

Liu Dongmin, Associate Research Fellow at the Institute of World Economics and Politics, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, released the "Global Financial Competitiveness Report 2025". According to this report, China has risen to fourth in global financial competitiveness, narrowing the gap with the United States for four consecutive years. Furthermore, China's fintech competitiveness has ranked third globally for two consecutive years.

Li Xiaowei, Deputy Secretary of the CPC Committee and General Manager of Beijing UnionPay Gold Card Technology Co., Ltd., launched "UnionPay Gold Card: Asset Management Solution Based on FinTech 'Cloud-Pipe-Terminal' Security Technology". The solution leverages UnionPay's cloud network platform and the cloud-pipe-terminal security technology architecture to create fintech solutions covering bills, assets, and supply chains. It connects the entire financial ecosystem, including enterprises, institutions, and regulators, to build a collaborative industrial-financial ecosystem, empowering intellectual property financing and the digital transformation of industries.

Chairman and CEO of VBAO Yang Bin centered his speech on "Transforming the Insurance Industry Ecosystem Through Digitalization", revealing how digital technologies are driving the insurance sector's shift from traditional transaction models to fully integrated intelligent service chains. The digital transaction platform he leads integrates fintech infrastructure, promoting deeper collaboration between the insurance industry and urban economies.

During the forum, the "Shijingshan District's Global Partners in Digital Finance" program was officially launched. Representatives from both domestic and international organizations, including Beijing Shijingshan Technology Innovation Group Co., Ltd., the China UK Business Development Centre, Ficolo, Fuel Ventures, and the Edinburgh Centre for Financial Innovations of the University of Edinburgh Business School, together activated the initiative. Shijingshan District will collaborate with these institutions to attract more international financial resources, co-develop a hub for digital financial innovation, boost the international influence of the Beijing Banking & Insurance Business Park, and inject fresh momentum into the capital's digital financial growth.

Innovation at the Forefront: Paving the Way for a New Era in Digital Finance

In recent years, Shijingshan has actively implemented the directives of the Central Financial Work Conference and prioritized the development of digital finance as a key initiative. With the Beijing Banking & Insurance Business Park as its central hub, the district is accelerating the realization of innovative applications in digital finance.

The district has further enhanced the role of finance with technological innovation by introducing the "Shijingshan's Plan for Finance with Technological Innovation". The "One Industry, One Fund" model has been initiated to create a virtuous cycle among technology, industry, and finance, while actively cultivating the fintech industry ecosystem.

The e-CNY ecosystem continues to expand, with the launch of the city's first digital yuan prepaid supervision platform. This initiative broadens the scope of e-CNY distribution, enabling over 100 entities in the district to facilitate its issuance. Consumer adoption is also increasing, with events such as the e-CNY Spring Festival Market and Dragon Boat Festival Cultural Market, further embedding digital yuan into daily consumption habits.

Shijingshan is boosting the concentration of key fintech institutions, with a number of national-level financial infrastructures, such as the National Banking and Insurance Industry Information Data Center, and the National FinTech Evaluation Center, being established. Leading fintech firms, including Everbright Technology, Longyingzhida FinTech, and Bairong Inc., are flocking to the district, expanding the digital finance ecosystem.

Looking ahead, Shijingshan District will continue to strengthen the innovative application of digital finance, establish a high-level comprehensive pilot zone for e-CNY, and enhance the quality and effectiveness of financial services for the real economy. By leveraging digital technologies, the district aims to drive high-quality development in the financial industry, contributing to the building of a financial power.