Recently, the 8th Belt and Road High-Quality Development Conference was held in Xiamen, Fujian Province. During the event, Xiamen National Accounting Institute (XNAI) released White Paper on Investment,Financing,and Compliance under the Belt and Road Initiative.

Professor Chen Lifang, Associate Professor at the Research Center for the Belt & Road Financial and Economic Development, Xiamen National Accounting Institute, introduced that the white paper is divided into four sections: Data, Survey, Case Studies, and Policies. It analyzes the systems and overview of Chinese enterprises' cross-border investment and financing from multiple dimensions, as well as the compliance issues and demands they face when expanding overseas. It also compiles multiple positive and negative case studies of corporate overseas compliance. On one hand, this white paper can provide policy guidance for enterprises engaging in overseas investment and offer references for making scientific financing decisions. On the other hand, it helps government departments fully grasp the information and compliance demands related to Chinese enterprises' cross-border investment and financing, providing a data basis for policy formulation.

The Data section describes the current situation and characteristics of Chinese enterprises' cross-border investment and financing from the dimensions of "attracting investment" (inbound) and "going global" (outbound), conducting in-depth analysis from both macro and micro data perspectives, and ultimately provides a comprehensive analysis of the net cross-border investment flow situation for both inbound and outbound investment.

The Survey section, based on news texts from mainstream media between 2019 and 2024, conducts compliance keyword frequency statistics and visual word cloud analysis. Seizing the opportunity of the "3rd Forum on Enterprise Compliance Construction Promoting High-Level Opening Up and Exchange Event on Opportunities for Enterprises Going Global," it carried out related research on corporate overseas compliance and provided a detailed analysis of multilateral development banks' compliance sanction systems.

The Case Studies section focuses on a series of representative compliance events. It selects compliance practices of companies like BAIC, Haier, and Nestlé as positive examples, outlining their experiences in system construction, risk prevention, and responsibility implementation. Meanwhile, it chooses negative cases such as Anker Innovation's power bank recall, the GlaxoSmithKline bribery case in China, the Enron accounting fraud scandal, and the Barings Bank collapse. It systematically analyzes the manifestations, legal applications, and trial outcomes of various violations, delving into the underlying compliance management failures and systemic loopholes to warn enterprises to prevent problems early and improve governance.

The Policies section compiles policy documents from China in the two fields of foreign investment management and outward investment management, covering national-level laws and regulations as well as local-level rules and systems, striving to comprehensively present the policy framework in this area.

It is understood that the Belt and Road High-Quality Development Conference is one of the important supporting events of the 25th China International Fair for Investment & Trade (CIFIT). It was jointly hosted by the China Association for International Economic Cooperation(AFIEC) and XNAI. With the theme "Promoting the Development of an Open Economy and Advancing the High-Quality Construction of the Belt and Road," the event featured keynote speeches, a main report presentation, the white paper release, and roundtable discussions. Nine guests from national ministries, financial institutions, universities, enterprises, and international organizations were invited to give thematic presentations and participate in exchanges and discussions.

Gao Yuanyuan, President of China Association for International Economic Cooperation, stated that after more than a decade of exploration and practice, high-quality development has become the defining theme of Belt and Road cooperation in the new era, with green development and compliance being two key pillars for achieving this. "The China Association for International Economic Cooperation is willing to work with all parties to jointly explore new paths for green development, build a new paradigm for compliant operations, and cultivate new drivers for cooperative growth."

Ding Yougang, Deputy Party Secretary and President of Xiamen National Accounting Institute, said: "Openness and inclusiveness are important connotations of the Silk Road spirit; green and compliance are basic guarantees for steady and long-term progress; knowledge innovation and exchange are key supports for international cooperation." He also stated that XNAI will continue to rely on the Research Center for the Belt & Road Financial and Economic Development and the Belt and Road Financial Capacity Building Platform to serve policy communication and coordination, disseminate sustainable development concepts, promote the practice of ESG standards by enterprises and Belt and Road projects, and provide intellectual and professional talent support for the high-quality development of the Belt and Road through policy research, strengthening the cultivation of international financial talents, and academic exchanges.

Chen Jian, former Vice Minister of Commerce and specially appointed expert for the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) Talent Pool for Participation in and Deliberation of State Affairs, analyzed the current international and domestic situation facing the high-quality development of the Belt and Road and offered several suggestions for the next steps: First, Belt and Road construction should align with the restructuring of global industrial and supply chains, and China should proactively plan the direction and trends of this restructuring. Second, vigorously develop trade in services, especially modern services, with partner countries to balance international payment pressures. Third, vigorously implement the Belt and Road Science, Technology and Innovation Action Plan to bridge the digital divide and technological development differences between different countries and regions. Fourth, establish and improve a comprehensive service system for high-quality Belt and Road development to provide enterprises with personalized, regular, and market-based professional services.

Li Zhongyuan, Chief Risk Officer of The Export-Import Bank of China (China EximBank), based on the bank's practical experience and from the perspective of strengthening risk prevention and effectively promoting cooperation, suggested that at the government level, project planning should be strengthened, project layout optimized, and policy supply enhanced. At the enterprise level, due diligence should be conducted beforehand, whole-process risk management strengthened during operations, and capacity building enhanced afterwards. At the financial institution level, the risk management and control system for overseas business should be improved, and diversified cooperation strengthened.

Qian Keming, Standing Committee Member of the 14th National Committee of the CPPCC, Vice Chairman of its Education, Science, Culture and Health Committee, and former Vice Minister of Commerce, believes that during the 15th Five-Year Plan period (likely referring to 2026-2030), the global economy will undergo eight major changes across three aspects: low-speed growth, increased volatility, and high divergence in macroeconomic growth; fragmentation of international economic governance rules and increased focus on supply chain resilience; and digital, intelligent, and green transformation of the global economy. In response, the national level should address these from six aspects: consolidating foundations, breaking through bottlenecks, unleashing potential, ensuring security, expanding cooperation, and leading transformation. At the enterprise level, the underlying logic of strategic planning should be reset, strengthening the three systems of risk management, compliance review, and ESG, accelerating the transition towards supply chain resilience and market localization, and digital and intelligent transformation. In the next 5 years, growth and opportunities will mainly concentrate in emerging markets and developing countries. International market布局 (distribution/layout) should be differentiated—deep cultivation in emerging markets, leveraging strengths in developed markets—to form complementarity and balance.

Green is a distinctive feature of high-quality Belt and Road cooperation. During a roundtable discussion themed "Promoting High-Quality Belt and Road Development through Green Compliance," five guests engaged in in-depth discussions: Sun Dahai, Director of the Financial Research Office, Policy Research Department, Ministry of Finance; Wan Zhe, Researcher at Beijing Normal University's Belt and Road School and Executive Director of the China Modern Finance Society; Li Guanghui, Dean and Professor of the China-ASEAN School of Economics/China Institute of Frontier Economics at Guangxi University; Liu Jiadan, General Manager of CNMTC Belarus LLC; and Qian Yuyi, Director of Public Affairs, ACCA China. Simultaneously, combining perspectives from fiscal support, academic exploration, corporate practice, and international rules, the five guests shared China's experience in promoting green development and compliance building, and offered suggestions for further improving relevant rules, strengthening policy exchange, and enhancing communication and collaboration. (by Xue Zhiwei, Journalist of Economic Daily)