Chinese President Xi Jinping announced Thursday night Asia Time that China will set up a Beijing Stock Exchange.
China will "continue to support the innovation and development of small and medium-sized enterprises, deepen the reform of the New Third Board, establish the Beijing Stock Exchange, and build the main hub to serve innovative small and medium-sized enterprises," Xi said during a speech he gave at the China International Fair for Trade in Services.
The China Securities Regulatory Commission, in a response to journalists' questions about the new stock exchange, said this is a "major strategic deployment" that will further guide the reform of China's New Third Board, which is China's main over-the-counter market that supplements the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges. It was launched in 2013 and attracts startups that need financing with lower listing requirements.