Total market capitalization of China's stock market 2012-2021

In 2021, the total market capitalization of China’s stock market exceeded 91 trillion yuan which was the highest annual turnover in the country’s history. In the same year, the trade revenue reached 258 trillion yuan. The development of domestic financial markets was a key objective of the Chinese government.

Stock markets in mainland China

Mainland China has two major stock exchanges. One is the Shanghai Stock Exchange that consists of the Main-Board mMarket and the Star mMarket. The companies listed on the Main-Board were mature and established in their industries, whereas the Star mMarket targets innovative startups. The other big stock exchange was the Shenzhen Stock Exchange. It was separated into three boards, the Main-Board, the SME-Board, and ChiNext mMarket.

Facilitating innovation

One crucial aspect of the financial market development strategy in China was the fostering of innovation. The country had the problem that upcoming, domestic tech-companies preferred to list on stock markets overseas. Therefore, both major bourses established boards that had more lenient listing requirements. For instance, it would allow startups that had not yet turned a profit to gain access to the financial market. These boards were the ChiNext board in Shenzhen and the Star Market in Shanghai.