Fintech companies step up financial support to SMEs

Chinese fintech companies are ramping up efforts to provide financial support for innovative small and medium-sized enterprises in a move to fuel the country's push in achieving innovation-driven economic growth.

360 DigiTech, the fintech arm of 360 Security Group, signed a cooperative agreement with the financial unit of business software specialist Kingdee on Thursday. The two fintech companies have vowed to strengthen cooperation on technology, capital, channel and customer base to help SMEs ease their financing difficulties.

"To create new development opportunities for the real economy, China needs to rely on 'little giant companies'. The country's support for such companies is increasing. Helping those companies grow through financial technology is a national strategy. It is also the major battlefield for us," Wu Haisheng, chief executive officer of 360 DigiTech, said.

The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology unveiled in July a list of 2,930 "little giant companies" – leading SMEs that specialize in niche sectors, command a high market share, boast strong innovative capacity and core technologies, adding the total number to 4,762 as of now. The country aims to cultivate 10,000 such compnaies by 2025.

Wang Hong, president of Kingdee financial unit, said industrial connectivity is important for the development of SMEs, but given the comlexity of industrial value chain, digitalized financial services targeting businesses have been lagging behind compared to those targeting individuals in terms of the level of intelligence and convenience.

"It is the 'blue ocean market' for fintech companies," he said.