Comrades, friends from the news media:

Good morning, everyone! Welcome to this on-site research and interview session on the CSRC’s 12386 hotline. Since its trial launch in September 2013, the 12386 hotline has handled 77,000 valid investor complaints and appeals, gradually becoming the primary channel for investors to voice their concerns and resolve disputes, as well as an important platform for regulatory authorities to engage with and serve investors. Thanks to the concerted efforts of multiple parties—particularly the strong support from the telecommunications sector—the 12386 hotline now offers direct dialing nationwide, enabling investors across the country to enjoy its services on an equal footing.

On this occasion, I am pleased to announce that the “Fairness at Your Fingertips” special campaign for investor protection is officially launched today, with the nationwide direct dialing service via the 12386 hotline serving as its inaugural initiative. This campaign is jointly initiated by the Investor Protection Bureau of the China Securities Regulatory Commission, the China Securities Investor Protection Fund Corporation, and the CSRC Small and Medium-Sized Investor Service Center. The purpose of organizing such an initiative is to thoroughly implement the “Opinions of the General Office of the State Council on Further Strengthening the Protection of the Legitimate Rights and Interests of Small and Medium-Sized Investors in the Capital Market” through concrete and practical measures, ensuring that all requirements for investor protection are fully integrated into every aspect and stage of capital market reform, development, and regulatory enforcement. In doing so, we aim to foster a fairer market environment, enabling every investor—especially the broad base of small and medium-sized investors—to genuinely feel that fairness is within their reach.

Fairness is an enduring value pursuit of humanity, the dominant theme of our times, and a hallmark of social progress. It is a core value of socialism with Chinese characteristics, and upholding fairness is both a practical necessity for implementing the spirit of the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China and for promoting social harmony and realizing the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. Moreover, fairness is an indispensable requirement for the healthy development of capital markets. Given the diverse participants and varied interest demands in capital markets, without a fair market environment it is impossible to ensure vibrant and orderly competition, and the market’s function of allocating resources effectively cannot be fully realized. Therefore, ensuring fairness in capital markets is one of the primary objectives of securities regulation.

Fairness is about ensuring that small and medium-sized investors enjoy equal access to information. Information is the foundation of investment. Given that these investors are at a disadvantage in the information-access chain, guaranteeing their equitable access to information is both the fundamental mission of securities regulation and our most important responsibility. We must firmly adopt an investor-centric approach, clearly define the content and standards for information disclosure, and use plain, easy-to-understand language to facilitate investors’ access to information. At the same time, we need to strengthen investor education, encouraging small and medium-sized investors to carefully analyze companies’ fundamentals, stay abreast of disclosed information, and avoid relying on hearsay or blindly following market trends. All small and medium-sized investors, especially those new to the market, must cultivate a strong risk awareness, make prudent investment decisions, invest rationally, assume risks on their own, and invest within their means.

Fairness is about ensuring that small and medium-sized investors have equal opportunities to participate in corporate decision-making and governance. Effective participation in corporate decision-making is a statutory right expressly conferred upon shareholders by the Company Law. It is imperative to address the persistent challenges faced by small and medium-sized shareholders, including difficulties in participating in decision-making and governance, insufficient consideration of their views, and, in some cases, deliberate restrictions on shareholder rights. To this end, effective measures should be taken to promote pilot initiatives for systems such as separate vote counting, online voting, and cumulative voting, and to advance the lawful operation of specialized institutions conducting shareholding rights-exercise pilot programs.

Fairness within reach means ensuring that small and medium-sized investors equally share in investment returns. The right to profit distribution is the most fundamental shareholder right. It is essential to fundamentally reverse the trend among listed companies of prioritizing fundraising over returning value to shareholders, continue to urge listed companies to comply with policy requirements on cash dividends, refine mechanisms for delivering investment returns, and ensure that listed companies create value for all shareholders.

Fairness is present in our daily lives precisely because it ensures that small and medium-sized investors can obtain equitable redress and compensation when their lawful rights are infringed. Without effective remedies, there can be no real rights. When investors’ legitimate rights and interests are violated, the channels for seeking redress must be unimpeded, the methods of redress must be diverse, and the procedures for obtaining redress must be convenient. While further refining and improving the litigation and arbitration systems and mechanisms, we must comprehensively strengthen diversified mechanisms for resolving interest disputes, such as dispute mediation, administrative settlement, and advance compensation, so as to ensure that injured investors can promptly receive fair legal support and compensatory relief.

The “Fairness is Around Us” special campaign for investor protection is an ongoing initiative, and this year we will focus on the following key tasks: First, we will expand the service capabilities of the 12386 hotline to ensure that investors can easily remember it, reach it without difficulty, obtain timely assistance, receive prompt responses, and place their trust in it, thereby enhancing investor satisfaction. Second, we will establish and improve the organizational framework for mediating securities and futures disputes, promote the establishment of a national-level dispute mediation body, continue to leverage the roles of industry associations and local mediation organizations, and ensure that applications for dispute mediation are convenient, procedures are streamlined, expertise and authority are assured, and implementation is effective. Third, we will launch a pilot program for specialized institutions to exercise shareholder rights on behalf of investors, using the demonstration effect to strengthen small and medium-sized investors’ awareness of their rights, guide them in exercising their rights and protecting their interests in accordance with the law, and urge listed companies to enhance corporate governance and treat all shareholders fairly. Fourth, we will vigorously advance the development of investor websites and investor education centers, enabling investors to have their own online platforms and dedicated service venues and channels, so that they can access fairer educational services free of charge.

The “Fairness is Around Us” special campaign for investor protection is a comprehensive, all-encompassing initiative with broad coverage. All units and departments within the CSRC system must, in accordance with the overall plan for the campaign, earnestly fulfill their respective duties and ensure effective implementation of the work.

All market participants shall strengthen their sense of responsibility for investor protection, proactively undertake relevant initiatives, and ensure that investor suitability management, facilitation of investors’ exercise of rights, complaint handling, educational services, and risk disclosure are effectively implemented throughout the entire course of their business operations.

Investors at large are the primary force in investor protection; it is especially important for them to enhance their self-protection capabilities and safeguard their legitimate rights and interests in accordance with the law.

Investor protection is a collective endeavor that requires the concerted efforts of all sectors of society and, above all, a conducive public-opinion environment. The large number of media representatives in attendance today underscores the keen interest and strong support that the press has long accorded to investor-protection work. We sincerely hope that the media will continue to leverage their strengths in public oversight and in education and outreach, ensuring that our initiatives resonate with the public, foster broad social consensus, and help cultivate a fair and rational market culture and climate.

Finally, I would like to extend my best wishes for the complete success of the “Fairness is Around Us” special investor protection campaign. Thank you all!