Main Board:

The Main Board dates back to 1986. It evolved and grew along with the shareholding system reform in state-owned-enterprises (SOEs) and in response to SOE development. The Main Board underwent three stages of development: preparation and establishment, adjustment and rapid development, and deepening and improvement. In spite of the suspension of IPOs in July 2000, SZSE Main Board has witnessed continuous improvement in quality thanks to concerted efforts from market participants. With enhanced financing function and issuers’ corporate governance structure, Shenzhen Main Board has continuously expanded its capacity to serve the real economy. The Main Board market has raised RMB 881 billion (USD 139.8 billion) and become a vital financing channel for major enterprises. The Main Board market has played an active role in promoting modern enterprise system, optimizing resource allocation, readjusting economic restructure and facilitating economic growth.

On 27 May, the SME Board was inaugurated. On 25 June, eight companies including Zhejiang NHU made debut on the SME Board. The launch of the SME Board was a major step toward the establishment of a multi-tiered capital market system and paved the way for a second board market. The SME Board has witnessed continuous expansion in size and gradual optimization of its industrial structure thanks to many high-quality innovative issuers. The SME Board highlights its role in supporting independent innovation. In February 2021, Agreed by the Chinese state council and approved by the China Securities Regulatory Commission, SZSE started preparation for the merger between the Mainboard and the SME Board. After the merger, SZSE will have a more plainly-structured, more clearly-positioned and better-featured market structure consisting of Main Board and ChiNext Market.

ChiNext:

The ChiNext market was launched in SZSE on 23 October, 2009. It provides an important platform for implementing the national strategy of independent innovation. It helps accelerate the transformation of economic development mode and galvanizes growth in emerging industries of strategic importance. In the past years, ChiNext market has seen smooth operation and exhibited distinctive sectoral features. A group of innovative enterprises successfully raised funds through the capital market.

On August 24, 2020, the listing ceremony of the first group of 18 enterprises under the reform of the ChiNext Board and the pilot project of the registration-based IPO system was held at Shenzhen Stock Exchange (SZSE). The successful listing of the first group of 18 companies on the ChiNext Board under the registration-based IPO system marks the official implementation of the reform of the ChiNext Board and the pilot project of the registration-based IPO system.

B-shares:

B-shares refer to the RMB-denominated special shares with their par values marked in RMB in their circulation and to be subscribed and traded in Hong Kong Dollars. The trading of B-shares was launched in 1992, giving foreign investors the access to China’s equity market. Since China’s entry into the WTO, domestic investors were also allowed to invest in B-shares using foreign currencies.