China ranks fourth in terms of its global financial competitiveness this year, following the United States, United Kingdom and Japan, with China's rank one place higher than last year, according to a new report released at the Digital Finance Forum during the Global Digital Economy Conference 2025 in Beijing.

The report, which evaluates 31 countries globally and was released by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences on Thursday, states the gap between the scores of China and the US has narrowed for four consecutive years.

Global financial competitiveness is defined as the ability of an economy's financial system to allocate financial resources and manage risks more effectively on a global scale compared to other economies, thereby promoting economic growth and social development, according to the CASS.

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"For segmented indicators, China's financial technology competitiveness has ranked third for two straight years, and this year's score is significantly higher than last year, driven by notable development potential of China's fintech industry," said Liu Dongmin, a senior research fellow at the Institute of World Economics and Politics of the CASS.

Meanwhile, the score of China's fintech industry development potential index increased from 35.12 last year to 57.25 this year, and this ranking has risen from 12th last year to fourth place globally this year. Among the sub indicators, the AI talent index in China has risen from eighth place last year to fourth place this year, the report said.

Major economies globally are actively promoting the growth of the digital economy, and China's digital finance market is highly dynamic and ranks top in the world in terms of its market size, said Li Dongrong, former deputy governor of the People's Bank of China.

Last year, the market size of global digital finance exceeded $4.5 trillion, and China's digital finance market size reached $3.2 trillion, becoming an important engine driving global growth, according to industry research company ChinaIRN.

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"China's development of digital finance technology, especially mobile payment technology, is globally leading. Leveraging on the growth of digital technology, China's financial services have effectively covered areas that were previously difficult to reach and the country has made effective breakthroughs in inclusive finance," Li said at the forum.

Chen Wenhui, former vice-chairman of the former China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission, said China's application of artificial intelligence technology in the financial industry is accelerating. The digital wave has brought and will bring comprehensive transformation to the economy and society. AI is on a track with high certainty, and the financial sector should pay close attention to it.

Contact the writer at zhuwenqian@chinadaily.com.cn