Songjiang ranks first in IP pledge financing in Shanghai

Songjiang District achieved outstanding results in the first quarter of this year, with 23 cases of intellectual property pledge financing, ranking first in the city in terms of quantity, according to the report recently released by the intellectual property office with Songjiang's market supervision bureau.

In addition, the registered amount of intellectual property pledge exceeded 300 million yuan (US$42 million), ranking second in the city. In recent years, the scale of Songjiang's intellectual property pledge loans has increased, and the "realization" of intellectual property to assets has gradually accelerated.

This has boosted the confidence of technology companies that have rooted in Songjiang and the Yangtze River Delta's G60 Science and Technology Innovation Corridor.

"At the beginning of this year, through patent pledges, our company obtained an additional loan of 3 million yuan from the Shanghai branch of the Bank of Communications, providing ample financial guarantee for our product research and development and market expansion," said Li Jin, manager of the business department of Shanghai Xinyuan Pharmaceutical Technology Co Ltd, proudly showing a stack of patent certificates.

Xinyuan Pharmaceutical is a high-tech enterprise engaged in the research and development, production and sales of fine chemicals and raw materials. Its products are mainly used in high-tech industries and strategic emerging industries such as biomedicine, new materials, new energy, energy conservation and environmental protection.

The company has attached great importance to intellectual property work. It established a dedicated intellectual property department in 2019, currently with two full-time personnel and five patent workers holding certificates, with a total of 37 patent applications and one valid registered trademark and one PCT patent.

As a company in a rapid growth period, Xinyuan Pharmaceutical needs sufficient financial support. However, they previously had no collateral for financing.

With the help of staff from the IP office with the district's market supervision bureau, the company learned about the patent pledge financing process and quickly obtained a bank loan.

Similarly, a smart manufacturing enterprise in Songjiang temporarily encountered a shortage of capital for purchasing raw materials due to a large number of orders. A bank in Songjiang provided them with a 5 million yuan "patent loan" using their patent as collateral, which solved the urgent needs of the enterprise.

"Using patents, trademarks, and other intellectual property as collateral to obtain financing can help reduce financing costs for enterprises and empower the development of small and medium-sized tech companies," said Lu Feng, IP office director.