As the Beijing Stock Exchange (BSE) marks its fourth anniversary, 282 innovative small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have been listed on the bourse, the Beijing Daily reported on Sunday.

The establishment of the BSE was an important move by Chinese policy-makers to deepen capital market reform, support small businesses, create a multi-pronged capital market, and promote innovation-driven economic development. The market's total capitalization has exceeded 900 billion yuan ($126.77 billion), according to the media report.

As of Friday, more than 80 percent of the listed firms at BSE are SMEs, more than 90 percent are from the private sector, and more than half are so-called "little giant" enterprises specializing in niche and high-tech sectors, the bourse said in a statement sent to the Global Times on Sunday.

Companies listed at BSE achieved steady growth in the first three quarters of this year. As of October 30, 279 firms announced their third-quarter results, with average operating revenue of 520 million yuan and a growth rate of 6 percent year-on-year. Average net profit reached 32.98 million yuan and more than 80 percent of the listed firms achieved profitability, according to the BSE statement.

The stock exchange began trading on November 15, 2021. From an initial 81 listed companies with a total market capitalization of less than 300 billion yuan, the bourse has expanded by leaps and bounds.

Analysts said on Sunday that BSE's strong performance reflects the synergy of policy support and market vitality. While BSE continues to push forward reforms and addresses issues such as liquidity, the bourse is set to add renewed vigor to the capital market amid the broader trend of accelerating technology-driven industrial upgrading in the country.

The significant achievements in its first four years have underscored the innovation momentum of the world's second-largest economy amid domestic structural transformations and external pressures, the analysts said.

Zhou Yunnan, a Beijing-based veteran investor, told the Global Times on Sunday that over the past four years, BSE has served as a crucial link connecting different tiers of China's capital market.

"Its core role lies in offering a wider range of capital options and a broader capital platform for a good number of innovation-oriented SMEs," Zhou said. "The most significant reform initiative launched by BSE was the introduction of the new '920' stock codes that give it a more distinct market identity and position it on par with the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock markets."

The Chinese government is striving to make the capital market more institutionally inclusive and adaptable and better balance its investment and financing functions.

Speaking at the Annual Conference of Financial Street Forum 2025 on October 29, Shang Qingjun, first-level inspector of the department of public company supervision at the China Securities Regulatory Commission, said that the market watchdog will improve BSE and China's National Equities Exchange and Quotations, also known as the "new third board," to better serve innovative SMEs.

Shang said that efforts will be made to tap the comprehensive advantages in the multi-pronged capital market, nurture "patient capital," optimize supervision of listed firms and strengthen coordination across government departments to back up innovation.

Tian Xuan, president of the National Institute of Financial Research at Tsinghua University, told the Global Times that unlocking the potential of BSE in serving specialized and sophisticated SMEs is a vital step in China's drive to strengthen the synergy of its capital market.

The moves contribute to broader capital market reform, which is aimed at further enhancing the adaptability and inclusiveness of the capital market through reforms in investment and financing, Tian said.

(Source: Global Times)