On May 27, 2018, co-hosted by Green Legal Global Alliance (GLGA), Sina Finance, and Beijing DOCVIT Law Firm, the “Forum on Private Equity and Asset Management in the New Regulatory Era and Release Conference of Legal Health Index of National Private Equity Industry” was held at Grand Hyatt Beijing. LIU Guangchao, President of Green Legal Global Alliance (GLGA) and Director of Beijing DOCVIT Law Firm presided over the forum. 

Experts present at the forum include: WANG Zhongmin, former vice-president of the National Council for Social Security Fund, XIA Bin, counsellor of the State Council, President of the National Economics Foundation, Honorary Director of Finance Research Institute of Development Research Center of the State Council, and member of Chinese Economists 50 Forum (CE50), CAO Heping, Professor at Peking University, and Deputy Director of Digital China Research Institute of Peking University, Ms ZHANG Chenghui, former director of Finance Research Institute of Development Research Center of the State Council, GUAN Tao, senior researcher at China Finance 40 Forum (CF40) and a member of CE50, CAO Deyun, Executive Vice President and Secretary-General of Insurance Asset Management Association of China (IAMAC), et al. 

Besides, a total of over 300 guests attended the forum, including more than 100 representatives of financial and investment institutions, such as Chinese Academy of Sciences, PICC, Brightvision Capital, Joiest, Beijing E-Town International Investment and Development Co., Ltd, Legend Capital, Shougang Fund, Z-Park Fund, Ground Fountain Holdings, Hongxin Asset Management Co., Ltd., Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, China Construction Bank, HuaXia Bank, Bank of Beijing, Bank of Kunlun, China Bohai Bank, CITIC Securities, Everbright Securities, Sealand Securities, Guotai Junan Securities, Capital Securities, Fortune Securities, Hua’an Securities, Huaxi Securities, Ping An Trust, Zhongrong Trust, AVIC Trust, Taiping Investment, Sun Life Everbright Asset, Hony Capital, CNNC Industry Fund, Shoreline Capital Management, JD Capital, Cybernaut Investment, CreditEase, Warburg Pincus, and Yinhua Fund, as well as those from other intermediary agencies such as the business circles, law firms and accounting firms. 

At the beginning of the forum, President Liu, on behalf of the organizers, extended a warm welcome to all the distinguished guests. He said, May 27 was the day of the new asset management regulations’ “completion of its first month of life”. Today, our colleagues from all walks of life gathered here to interpret the highest-order, most wide-ranging and most rigorous regulations on asset management in China, focus on the latest development situation of private equity industry and capital management, examine the new trend of financial regulation, and issue China’s first legal health index of the private equity industry, which was quite meaningful. It's hoped this forum would make positive and beneficial exploration of the present development situation and future development direction of China’s private equity industry. 

This forum consists of five sessions: opening ceremony and keynote speeches, interpretation of Legal Health Index Report on National Private Equity Industry, private equity and asset management development in the new regulatory era, the new development trends of China’s FOF, and closing ceremony. 

At the forum, XIA Bin, counsellor of the State Council, President of the National Economics Foundation, Honorary Director of Finance Research Institute of Development Research Center of the State Council, and a member of Chinese Economists 50 Forum (CE50) delivered an opening speech. Xia expressed exclusive views on the nature of ”pan-asset management”, how to regulate leverage, how about the degree of regulation, how to maintain the bottom line of keeping systemic risk at bay, how to break social moral hazard, and other issues. 

CAO Heping, Professor at Peking University and Deputy Director of Digital China Research Institute of Peking University made an opening speech on New Mission of Private Equity and Legal Essence of Regulation Under the Transformation of the Era. Professor Cao analyzed the development of enterprises under the transformation of the era, and presented wonderful views on the new mission of private equity and the legal essence of regulation. 

Afterwards, each economic tycoon delivered a keynote speech. 

WANG Zhongmin, former vice-president of the National Council for Social Security Fund, shared his views on “selection and utilization of instruments in the big financial scene”. He pointed out that, from the perspective of financial deepening, we must have provided financial instruments when it’s bursting out or even wildly growing, constantly providing legal support from a legal perspective. This is also our logic to widen financial deepening, and be more leverage-driven and debt-driven. 

GUAN Tao, senior researcher at China Finance 40 Forum (CF40) and member of Chinese Economists 50 Forum (CE50) delivered a speech China’s Financial Opening-up Re-accelerated. GUAN Tao analyzed the objective situation of the re-acceleration of China's finance opening after wave-like development, made an exclusive interpretation of the main features of this round of China’s finance opening, and expressed his views on market-oriented exchange rate reform.

Ms ZHANG Chenghui, former director of Finance Research Institute of Development Research Center of the State Council, made a speech on PE Fund and the Development of Responsibility Finance. Starting with reflections on the international crisis in 2008, she analyzed the reasons and necessity of "why shall we develop responsibility finance” and, based on the current background of the times, put forward the direction of “how to develop responsibility finance”. 

In the presence of all the distinguished guests. WANG Zhongmin, XIA Bin, CAO Heping, ZHANG Chenghui, GUAN Tao, LIU Guangchao, and DENG Qingxu jointly issued China’s first Private Equity Industry Health Index Report. 

Lawyer SIMA Yayun, Beijing DOCVIT Law Firm’s senior partner presided over the “Interpretation of Legal Health Index Report on National Private Equity Industry” session. Lawyer QIAO Zhaoshu, DOCVIT Law Firm’s senior partner, as the report releaser, explained the report in detail. She introduced the origin of the private equity industry’s legal health index, and pointed out that the report was an important achievement that evaluated the private equity industry from a legal perspective, took “legal health” as the guidance and evaluation standard, and had a nonprofit and academic nature. Also, Qiao introduced in detail the definition, compilation process, data sources, data collection & processing, calculation methods of the private equity industry’s legal health index, and interpreted the basic content, core highlights and significance of the report. The report showed that the health index of China’s private equity industry in 2017 was 122.38, and meanwhile released the list of top 50 PE fund managers. 

Afterwards, participants made speeches and comments on the legal health index report on the national private equity industry. 

This forum included two sub-forums, and the topic of each was “Private Equity and Asset Management Development in the New Regulatory Era” and “New Development Trends of FOF”. 

Sub-forum 1: Private Equity and Asset Management Development in the New Regulatory Era 

CAO Deyun, Executive Vice President and Secretary-General of Insurance Asset Management Association of China (IAMAC), made a speech on the basic value and concrete practice of private equity investment. Cao said, PE funds should all observe value investing. On the basis of fully understanding the basic law of private equity investment, we should take value investing as the principle and datum quantity analysis as the core technology. When it comes to our current practice of private equity investment, we should strengthen support to the real economy. 

OUYANG Hao, Managing Director and Chief Legal Officer of Legend Capital, made a speech on “The effect of the new regulations on asset management on PE fund”. 

TAN Guobin, Chief Investment Officer of PICC Capital made a speech on “Path of insurance institutions’ participation in private equity and its reflections”. 

At the roundtable session, CAO Deyun, OUYANG Hao, TAN Guobin, GAO Jiaqing, President of Capital Factor Market Association, MAI Shize, partner of Prosperity Investment, founder of 170ying, XU Jiansheng, Chairman of Joiest Group, and ZHOU Zhixiang, Business Director of Hongxin Asset Management Co., Ltd. had a discussion on such hot topics as ”impact of the new regulations on asset management on PE fund managers and PE funds, differentiated regulation of venture capital fund, PE funds’ typical restricted area, mine area and gray area, transformation and direction of financial institutions in the pan-asset management era, commercial banks’ business transformation and direction/road of future transformation of principal-protected bank financial products in the context of the new regulations on asset management, and asset management business risk management in the new regulatory environment”. 

Sub-forum 2: New Development Trends of China’s FOF

In the ”New Development Trends of China’s FoF in the New Regulatory Era” session, in view of the new regulations on asset management and industry experience, the participants delivered keynote speeches. 

ZHANG Yong, General Manager of CAS Holdings and Chairman of Chinese Academy of Sciences Capital Management Co., Ltd. (CAS Capital), made a speech and shared the exploration of Chinese Academy of Sciences in the Fund of Funds (FOF) business in recent years, as well as its further FOF business planning. “This is the best time for FOF,” Zhang said, “we FOF colleagues need to work hard together. The new regulations on asset management had brought about great changes to FOF industry, and we should take this as the way forward to promote specialization and synchronization. 

LIN Zhu, Chairman of Brightvision Capital Co., Ltd. and President of China Urban Operation Alliance, shared his reflections and views on equity investment and FOF. Lin said, how to find non-state-owned funds and make them enter FOF and gradually become an important part and even the leading part of FOF is a key issue we face as private equity business entities. 

At the roundtable session, ZHANG Yong, LIN Zhu, CUI Yue, managing partner of Beijing Industrial Development and Investment Fund (Beijing Advanced Industry Fund), TANG Xuefeng, General Manager of Beijing E-Town International Investment and Development Co., Ltd., Ms LI Jing, managing partner of Shougang Fund, and LI Gang, Managing Director of Z-Park Fund had a discussion on such hot topics as “investment and development trend of government guiding fund, in-depth analysis of special problems of state-owned industry fund, cross-border capital flows and China’s FOF development, market-oriented FOF and government guiding fund: compete or cooperate?, inspiration of overseas PE FOF to China’s FOF industry inspiration, and the impact of Sino-US trade disputes on cross-border investment”. 

Closing Ceremony 

At the end of the forum, DENG Qingxu, Vice President of Sina, delivered a closing speech on behalf of the organizers. He expressed thanks to the industry colleagues and guests for their attention and support and then said “Law is the foundation of all business activities. The legal health index of the private equity industry is necessary and significant. It is hoped that Green Legal Global Alliance (GLGA) will continue to optimize the private equity industry’s legal health index system while further expanding legal index research in other industries. Sina Finance will continue to work with GLGA and DOCVIT to make moderate but sincere contributions to private equity industry’s sound development.