Zone has world-class business environment, says consultancy

The Qianhai Shenzhen-Hong Kong Modern Service Industry Cooperation Zone in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, is now considered to have a world-class business environment, said market consultancy Deloitte China.

Since the Plan for Comprehensively Deepening the Reform and Opening-Up of the Qianhai Shenzhen-Hong Kong Modern Service Industry Cooperation Zone was launched on Sept 6, 2021, Shenzhen has rolled out 203 implementation plans, officials said at a news conference in April. To date, these plans have led to fruitful results.

Huang Xiaopeng, executive deputy director of the Qianhai administration bureau, said the Qianhai Cooperation Zone is taking the lead in China in making breakthroughs in the innovation and development of the modern service industry, promoting the innovation of its scientific and technological development system and mechanism, and creating a world-class business environment.

"The Qianhai Cooperation Zone is becoming more open," said Sun Lecheng, a partner at the KPMG Digital Ignition Center.

"We have made great use of preferential policies and a good business environment in the zone to increase our independent research and development capacity.

"By doing so, we are able to deeply participate in the construction of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, and double our business here." Sun said.

Shenzhen is an entrepreneurial city and Qianhai in Shenzhen is the first choice for young Hong Kong and Macao entrepreneurs to start their own businesses on the Chinese mainland, an entrepreneur from Hong Kong said.

The entrepreneur's company is located at the Qianhai Shenzhen-Hong Kong Youth DreamWorks, a startup incubator in Qianhai. As of the first quarter of the year, Dream-Works is home to 578 companies, 314 of which were set up by entrepreneurs from Hong Kong.

Professionals in Hong Kong and Macao with 18 types of certifications can practice in Qianhai only by registration. To promote high-level international cooperation, Qianhai International Talent Port has been put into use, providing 451 one-stop services for talents from all over the world.

Officials said a construction project in Qianhai can start as soon as the land is acquired. Constructors can apply for all relevant permits at one time and the processing time for examination and approval has been reduced from 49 to 13 days.

Qianhai's diversified credit information service system covers more than 3.8 million commercial entities in Shenzhen and the regulations on investor protection in the area are taking shape.

From January to September, there were 27,500 newly registered enterprises in Qianhai, with a registered capital of 329.41 billion yuan ($45.38 billion). A total of 361 Fortune Global 500 companies have set up branches in Qianhai. In the first three quarters of the year, Qianhai's GDP reached 130.52 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 3.3 percent.

At a global investment promotion event on Tuesday, several projects worth over 120 billion yuan were signed. The list of investors is star-studded, as it includes the world's top 500 investment companies and key players in financial, logistics, scientific and technological services, information services, and the cultural and creative industry.

Sunny Siu, founder and CEO of Jaguar Microsystems, said: "Qianhai is the most representative case of integration of Shenzhen and Hong Kong. It not only has unique geographical advantages, but also strong industrial and human resources. It offers a series of preferential policies ranging from tax reduction, rewards for talents to rent subsidy, and multiple support to Hong Kong-based enterprises."

yinruowei@chinadaily.com.cn

From left: A Ferris wheel in Oh Bay scenic spot in Shenzhen is among the charms of the city's seashore sights. Thousands of containers sit in the port area in the west of Shenzhen. QIU GENMAO/FOR CHINA DAILY