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Shenzhen Stock Exchange (SZSE) held the 2017 Investor Protection and Service Symposium on March 15. About 40 attendees were present, including the principals from CSRC Investor Protection Bureau, Shenzhen Securities Regulatory Bureau, China Securities Investor Protection Fund Corporation, China Securities Minority Investor Protection Service Center and Shenzhen Securities and Futures Dispute Resolution Center, experts and scholars, media representatives, investor education staff of intermediaries and investor representatives. At the symposium, participating representatives introduced the general situations of investor protection developed by interested units, discussed the policies and practices on investors’ law-based rights execution and protection and investor adequacy management, exchanged experience in constructing investor education bases and proposed opinions and suggestions on deepening the work on investor protection.
A principal of CSRC Investor Protection Bureau said that the Bureau has made encouraging achievements in the perfection of protection system arrangement, the innovation in investor protection approaches, the effective development of investor protection activities and the proper handling of investor appeals. In 2017, the Bureau will highlight the work on eight aspects, namely, studying and formulating investors’ appeal handling relation, promoting the establishment of a multi-tiered investor compensation system, establishing high-level authoritative mediation institutions, expanding investors’ rights execution, launching investor welfare websites, accelerating the inclusion of investor education into national education pilot projects, conducting surveys on investor conditions and effectively evaluating investors.
A SZSE principal expressed that investor education is a systematic and specialized project for it involves multiple facets including self-discipline supervision, administrative supervision and judicial remedy and that it necessitates the joint efforts from all walks of life to form a working system featuring full coverage and organic connection. With the theme of “communication and understanding, progress hand in hand — investor protection always on the road”, the symposium was designed to implement the spirit of the 2017 National Securities and Futures Supervision Work Conference and collect wisdom so that investor protection can be jointly moved forward and enhanced to better drive the stable development of capital market reforms.
The SZSE principal revealed that SZSE has been taking the protection of legitimate rights and interest of investors, especially minority investors, as the start point and foothold of its front-line supervision and has made a series of explorations as follows in recent years. First, the system foundation of investor protection has been consolidated by adapting to the new trend and new requirements of market development, enhancing information disclosure efficiency via issuing the trading suspension business memo and improving the investor adequacy management in structured funds. Second, the front-line supervision efficiency has been strengthened by positively coping with the new situations and new issues in leveraged buyout and closely monitoring abnormal trading behaviors in the spirit of implementing law-based comprehensive strict supervision. Third, work modes have been improved to promote investor education to shift in an interactive and experiential direction. For example, through the “Getting Inside Listed Companies” event, investors can acquire better understanding of the actual corporate operation via in-person viewing, inquiring and chatting. Fourth, the work vision has been broadened by fully making use of new information interactive models to facilitate the going mobile, intelligent and international of investor tasks.
A principal of Shenzhen Securities Regulatory Bureau indicated that on account of the market risk features reported and found by different types of investors, they will constantly improve investor protection from the entry points of implementing the measures on investor adequacy management and doing well the work on investor protection. Meanwhile, a principal of China Securities Investor Protection Fund Corporation introduced the front-end work conditions of the “12386” hotline and said their next priority will be optimizing the transmitting workflow to enhance handling efficiency. The principal of China Securities Minority Investor Protection Service Center presented cases to point out the problems encountered in shareholding exercise and put forward suggestions on reinforcing investor protection. In his presentation, the principal of Shenzhen Securities and Futures Dispute Resolution Center explained the features of a “four-in-one” dispute resolution system, through which the Center has played positive roles in safeguarding the legitimate interest and rights of minority investors, and proposed suggestions like a diversified dispute settlement mechanism.
An expert representative, Professor Guo Li from the Law School of Peking University shared his academic opinions from the three aspects of compound feature, connotation and scope of investors. Professor Liu Junhai from the Law School of Renmin University of China delivered his keynote speech expounding the mission, philosophy and measures of investor protection. In addition, the investor protection practitioners from securities companies including CITICS, investor representatives and a media representative from Securities Times aired their opinions and suggestions on improving investor protection systems, constructing investor protection bases and other issues.
At the symposium, the participating parties also discussed and exchanged views on other hot issues on investor protection in a warm and harmonious atmosphere. To make investor protection systems truly work, we need the support from market players, the mass of investors and the staff of securities operation organizations. Also, we should know investors’ real needs and listen to their genuine thoughts while taking the opinions and wisdom of experts, scholars and media peers. The symposium has delivered a bridge of communication, understanding and discussion to all parties and pulled heads together to make them jointly endeavor to improve the weak parts in investor protection. As a result, the construction of a fair market system will be facilitated and a sound and robust market environment will be created, which in turn will help keep the work on investor protection moving forward.
