By the end of May, the contracted amount for re-lending policies for sci-tech innovation and technological transformation loans reached 1.74 trillion RMB, with sci-tech loans growing 12 percent year on year — outpacing overall loan growth, according to a press conference held by the State Council Information Office on July 14.

The conference reported the monetary credit policy implementation and financial statistics for the first half of 2025, and the term "science and technology" was mentioned 49 times — a testament to the intensive rollout and tangible results of sci-tech financial policies during this period.

Cao Yuanyuan from the People's Bank of China (PBOC)'s financial markets department, stated that this year the central bank has introduced two key measures: optimizing re-lending policies for sci-tech innovation and technological transformation; and launching a "sci-tech board" in the bond market. These initiatives aim to accelerate the development of a sci-tech finance ecosystem spanning credit, bonds and equity financing.

The re-lending policies for sci-tech innovation and technological transformation have achieved expanded scale, lower costs and broader coverage. As of the end of May, banks had signed 1.7 trillion RMB in sci-tech innovation and technological transformation loans with enterprises — 1.9 times the level at the end of 2024. The loan balance was 614 billion RMB.

These funds have enabled 15,000 tech small and medium-sized enterprises to secure their first loans and supported 3,983 equipment renewal projects in key sectors.

The bond market's "sci-tech board" represents an innovative approach to sci-tech finance, introducing differentiated issuance and trading mechanisms to support financial institutions, tech firms and equity investment institutions issuing sci-tech innovation bonds. Between its May launch and June 30, it had seen 288 entities issue approximately 600 billion RMB worth of bonds, including over 400 billion RMB on the inter-bank market.

Policy innovation achievements are evident from the data: 27 equity investment institutions issued 15.35 billion RMB in sci-tech innovation bonds on the inter-bank market by June 30. Among them, five private institutions have received credit enhancement from risk-sharing tools, achieving longer maturities, lower issuance costs and more effective innovation capital formation.

PBOC Deputy Governor Zou Lan highlighted the clear monetary policy effectiveness in supporting the real economy, with continued credit structure optimization. At the end of May, inclusive loans to small and micro businesses grew 11.6 percent year on year, medium- and long-term loans for the manufacturing sector rose 8.8 percent, and tech loans expanded 12 percent — all exceeding overall loan growth.