汇丰中国成为首批参与上海自贸账户功能升级试点外资银行

Core Viewpoint - The recent upgrade of the Free Trade Account functions in the Shanghai Free Trade Zone marks a significant enhancement in the level of liberalization and facilitation for cross-border trade and investment, aiming to attract more multinational corporations to use Shanghai as a financial hub in the Asia-Pacific region [1][3][5]. Group 1: Policy Implementation - The People's Bank of China officially implemented the "Implementation Measures for the Upgrade of Free Trade Account Functions in the Shanghai Free Trade Zone" on December 5, which is part of eight policy measures announced earlier in June to optimize and upgrade the Free Trade Account functions [5]. - The upgrade allows for unrestricted fund transfers within the business scope of enterprises and outside the negative list, simplifying the processes for foreign debt and cross-border payments [5]. Group 2: Impact on Enterprises - The upgraded Free Trade Account will significantly enhance the convenience of capital project fund allocation, promoting efficient settlement, financing, and circulation of domestic and foreign funds around the real economy [3]. - HSBC China, as one of the first foreign banks to participate in the pilot, successfully opened a function-upgraded Free Trade Account for a multinational enterprise in the Shanghai Free Trade Zone, indicating the bank's proactive role in facilitating cross-border trade and investment [1][7]. Group 3: Financial Innovation - The new policy serves as an innovative foundation for cross-border fund settlement for foreign-invested enterprises in China, making cross-border trade and fund settlement more accessible [5]. - HSBC China has been at the forefront of financial services in the Free Trade Zone, offering services such as offshore financing, full-function fund pools, and syndicate loans under the Free Trade Account framework [7].