China Securities Regulator Urges Funds to Back Innovation, Warns Against Speculation

China's top securities regulator urged the fund industry to support domestic innovation while warning against excessive speculation and concept hype. Wu Qing, chairman of the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC), said at a conference, according to RTHK, that authorities will emphasize fairness and standardisation, prevent abuse of technological advantages, and crack down on illegal activities such as market manipulation. Wu said China's emerging and future industries need capital support, and called on the fund industry to focus on national strategies while improving global competitiveness and resilience to external shocks. His remarks came a day after the CSRC tightened oversight of the country's US$3.4 trillion private fund industry. Wu also cited rising external uncertainties and high market volatility, noting that US-traded chipmakers fell on Friday, erasing about US$1.3 trillion in market value. He said a new wave of technological revolution led by artificial intelligence needs a more compatible financial system, and urged private equity firms to increase long-term investment in early-stage, hard-technology start-ups.