Investors check the A-share market at a securities brokerage in Jinhua, East China's Zhejiang Province in July. Photo: VCG

China plans to phase in a registration system for all IPOs and establish a normalized de-listing mechanism, according to a special government meeting on Saturday.

At the special meeting of the Financial Stability and Development Committee of the State Council, China's cabinet, presided over by Vice Premier Liu He, the need to roll out more solid steps in the reform and opening-up of financial systems was highlighted.

This includes the need to enhance the primary functioning of the capital market, fully implement an IPO registration system, establish a normalized de-listing mechanism, and continuously increase the proportion of direct financing via the capital market.

Registration-based reform will be deemed the bellwether of the broader capital market reform, and it is bound to bring major institutional improvements to the sector, according to Yi Huiman, chairman of the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC), the regulator of the stock market. 

China has stepped up IPO reform since 2019, implementing the new system on the Shanghai Stock Exchange's sci-tech innovation board, or the STAR market, and the Shenzhen Stock Exchange's ChiNext board.

The ongoing reform has achieved remarkable results and won recognition from the investors.

The STAR market, for instance, has seen a more efficient approval and registration process, with the average time between IPO application and registration shortened to only five months.

Apart from efforts to roll out the new IPO system, the meeting also emphasized the need to improve the fair competition review mechanism, strengthen law enforcement in overseeing anti-monopoly and unfair competition cases, and enhance comprehensive market supervision.

The meeting also called for a "zero tolerance" approach to all violations of laws and regulations, and stressed the importance of preventing financial risks and maintaining financial stability in China.