China to enhance capital access for 'little giants'

On Monday, China's top industry regulator said that the country will step up efforts to enhance capital access for little giant companies, and promote the development of unicorns in advanced tech sectors like 6G and brain-computer interfaces.

Wang Jiangping, vice-minister of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, said that the ministry will collaborate with the China Securities Regulatory Commission to launch the third batch of specialized boards for little giant companies in the regional equity market. 

Little giant companies refer to small and medium-sized enterprises that typically specialize in niche sectors, command high market shares and boast strong innovative capacity.

The ministry also plans to sign a strategic cooperation agreement with the Beijing Stock Exchange to further streamline financing channels for these firms, Wang said.

Beyond SME support, Wang emphasized that China is also placing a greater emphasis on developing unicorn companies — startups valued at over $1 billion — in emerging high-tech fields such as atomic-level manufacturing, 6G and brain-computer interfaces.

More efforts will be made to increase financial backing for these unicorns, including support for public listings, mergers and acquisitions, to accelerate their growth, he added.