context: In May 2025, the Ministry of Science and Technology, alongside six other departments, released policy guidelines aimed at speeding up the establishment of a scitech financial system. The system aims to address the problems of inadequate support for high-risk, high-tech ventures and funding difficulties for innovative companies. Building a credit data system for banks has been key to this effort. Guidelines for the innovation points system were published and trialled in several regions since August 2024 for this purpose. Now, the system is expected to be implemented nationwide.
The innovation points system (an evaluation framework initially piloted in national-level high-tech zones and subsequently extended nationwide) has facilitated the identification and financial support of promising technology SMEs, reports Scitech Daily.
MoST (Ministry of Science and Technology) and five other departments have issued new policies to promote this system nationwide.
The system was initially piloted in national high-tech zones and has now expanded nationwide, according to the report. The innovation points system becomes an influential policy tool in scitech financing, states a MoST official.
As Scitech Daily notes, its mechanism includes
- evaluating SMEs on innovation input, output and growth potential
- Iintegrating government data, financial services and SMEs' financial needs
- banks use innovation points scores as supplementary credit risk assessment tools
Over five years, MoST collaborated with over ten banks to launch specialised innovation points loans.
The report highlights integration with other financial policies in 2024
- system linked with specific refinancing and guarantee policies
- MoST evaluated 520,000 companies, selecting 71,435 qualified SMEs, recommended to 21 national-level state banks and the national financing guarantee fund
- 31 provinces implemented 12,200 specific business cases, totalling C¥38.492 bn, with SMEs accounting for 92.43 percent
- regional examples include
- Hebei Province set up C¥147 million in special funds for non-performing loan compensation, leveraging C¥310.7 bn in loans from eight partner banks
- Anhui Province set up a multi-level technology guarantee system, reaching cumulative guarantees of C¥152.881 bn for 21,260 business cases
Incomplete governmental data-sharing mechanisms, limited application scenarios and insufficient risk-sharing structures are key challenges.
To address these challenges, the MoST official suggests
- plans to refine core indicators for more precise SME innovation evaluation
- encouraging banks to develop customised financial products based on innovation points
- strengthening linkage of innovation points with refinancing and guarantee schemes
- setting up risk-sharing mechanisms and differentiated incentives for financial institutions
- promoting risk compensation funds at regional levels