Party Secretary Li meets MasterCard CEO

Shanghai Party Secretary Li Qiang met Ajaypal Singh Banga, president and chief executive officer of MasterCard Inc, in Shanghai yesterday morning.

Shanghai is accelerating the construction of an international economic, financial, trade, shipping and technological innovation center, according to the important guiding spirit of President Xi Jinping on the city’s work, Li revealed. The international financial center is an important functional positioning of Shanghai and one of the core competitiveness of the city. “We will further expand the opening up of the financial industry in accordance with the requirements of the central government,” he added.

“We welcome MasterCard to actively participate in the construction of the Shanghai international financial center, put more financial business and technology business in Shanghai, further develop in the areas of smart city, inclusive finance, payment innovation, etc. in order to achieve greater development,” Li noted. Shanghai will always adhere to an open attitude, constantly improve the business environment, and provide better services and create better conditions for the development of domestic and overseas enterprises, the city leader said.

Banga, in his reply, said that MasterCard is optimistic about the development of Shanghai and China, and will expand its investment in the city to develop financial technologies, improve service, attract top talent from overseas, and make more contributions to the construction of the international financial center in Shanghai.

City leader Zhuge Yujie also attended the meeting.