The Shanghai Financial Service Office and Hong Kong Finance Bureau sign a financial cooperation agreement on June 14, pledging to work more closely in the fields of products, personnel, technology and regulation. [Photo/provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Officials from Shanghai signed an agreement to strengthen financial cooperation with Hong Kong on June 14. The deal covers areas of personnel, products, technology and regulation. Since the signing of a financial Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between Shanghai and Hong Kong in 2010, various projects have been launched including road shows, student exchanges and financial product promotion.

Zheng Yang, director of the Shanghai Financial Service Office, praised Hong Kong's rich experience in the financial sector. He said Shanghai is accelerating its pace of building an international finance center and hoped the cooperation could create new areas of growth in the future.

Chen Jiaqiang, director of the Hong Kong Finance Bureau, said Hong Kong plays an important role as an investment bridgehead that provides lower-cost funds for enterprises. In the process of the RMB’s internationalization, more cooperation opportunities will be created which will lead to a win-win situation for both sides.

Shanghai and Hong Kong pledged to implement the MOU firmly to promote the country's financial reform and international competitiveness.