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Steering FinTech: Techno-industrial policy for the data-driven economy in China’s Greater Bay Area

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  • Dimitar Anguelov

Abstract

China has emerged as a global force in the digital economy, its rapid technological advancement challenging the technological leadership of the West and generating geopolitical-economic tensions. Positioned at the cutting edge of innovation, financial technology – commonly referred to as FinTech – has emerged as a key terrain in this battle for financial and technological dominance. China’s rapid ascendance in this sphere raises questions about the political-economic drivers and conditions of existence of such transformations. While the literature on FinTech examines market-driven, industry- and firm-specific processes transforming global financial networks, less is known about the roles of the state in steering the integration of technological and financial systems as a national development strategy. This paper analyzes how the Chinese party-state under Xi Jinping is implementing a techno-industrial policy centered around data as a new factor of production, seeking to ascend the industrial value chain and compete at the technological frontier. Focusing on the Greater Bay Area region – a preeminent innovation economy and financial hub – the paper examines the policy mechanisms, local economic spaces and practices grounding this digital economy, shaped by the interplay between state interventionism and the market-driven allocation of resources.

Suggested Citation

  • Dimitar Anguelov, 2026. "Steering FinTech: Techno-industrial policy for the data-driven economy in China’s Greater Bay Area," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 58(2), pages 274-302, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:envira:v:58:y:2026:i:2:p:274-302
    DOI: 10.1177/0308518X251394557
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    References listed on IDEAS

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