140 billion yuan, the social security fund invests in Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Fujian, and Hubei.

At the end of this year, the social security funds have been actively making investments. The social security science and technology innovation funds in Zhejiang, Jiangsu, and Fujian have successively completed their filings, and the first social security science and technology innovation fund in Central China has been established in Hubei.

On December 25th, the Hubei Social Security Science and Technology Innovation Fund was officially signed in Wuhan. It is jointly established by the National Council for Social Security Fund, Hubei Province, Wuhan City, and China Construction Bank, with an initial scale of 20 billion yuan.

According to a source familiar with the matter interviewed by a reporter from Science and Technology Innovation Board Daily, this fund is the first social security science and technology innovation fund in the central and western regions. Two Hubei state - owned institutions have confirmed their participation in the fund's establishment. The fund's capital contribution will follow a "central - local cooperation" model, and the sub - funds are already in preparation.

140 billion yuan, four provinces

From the earliest deployment in Beijing, Shanghai, and Shenzhen, and then expanding to Zhejiang and Jiangsu, the social security funds' layout in the venture capital field has covered the areas of "Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Zhejiang, Jiangsu, and Shanghai". The newly signed Fujian and Hubei are respectively the southeastern gateway and the central industrial high - ground.

In terms of the fund's scale and operation mode, the social security science and technology innovation funds have gone through an iteration. From July 2023 to January 2024, the Zhongguancun Independent Innovation Special Fund of the social security fund in Beijing, the Yangtze River Delta Science and Technology Innovation Equity Investment Fund of the national social security fund in Shanghai, and the Greater Bay Area Science and Technology Innovation Special Fund of the social security fund in Shenzhen were established successively, each with a scale of 5.1 billion yuan.

In these three funds, the social security fund accounted for an absolute proportion of the capital contribution, contributing 5 billion yuan to each fund. The selected management institutions are Legend Capital, IDG Capital, and Shenzhen Capital Group, all of which are well - established institutions that have long - term cooperation with the social security fund.

However, this year, when the social security science and technology innovation funds extended their reach beyond Beijing, Shanghai, and Shenzhen to Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Fujian, and Hubei, there were obvious changes in the fund's scale and management mode.

Firstly, in terms of scale, the initial scale of the social security science and technology innovation funds in Zhejiang and Jiangsu reached 50 billion yuan, ten times that of the previous funds. In Fujian and Hubei, relatively less - developed regions, the initial scale of the social security science and technology innovation funds is also 20 billion yuan. In total, the total scale of the social security science and technology innovation funds' layout in these four provinces this year has reached 140 billion yuan, more than ten times that of the funds in Beijing, Shanghai, and Shenzhen.

After the exponential expansion of the scale, the social security fund no longer dominates in terms of the capital contribution ratio. According to the data from Cailian Press Venture Capital Connect - ZX, in the funds of Zhejiang, Jiangsu, and Fujian that have completed their filings, the social security fund subscribes for 40% of the capital, the remaining 20% is contributed by bank AICs (Financial Asset Investment Companies), and 40% is contributed by multiple local state - owned enterprises in total.

The management institutions of the social security science and technology innovation funds in the above regions have also changed from well - established market - oriented institutions to representative local state - owned institutions. The "mother fund + direct investment" model has appeared in the social security science and technology innovation fund system for the first time. The Zhejiang Social Security Science and Technology Innovation Fund has announced that it will gradually set up six special funds to build a multi - level fund system covering the entire cycle of science and technology innovation enterprises through the "mother fund + direct investment" model.

According to a reporter from Science and Technology Innovation Board Daily, the Hubei Social Security Science and Technology Innovation Fund is also in the process of preparing sub - funds.

In contrast, the three funds in Beijing, Shanghai, and Shenzhen did not invest in sub - funds and all made direct investments. According to the data from Cailian Press Venture Capital Connect - ZX, as of now, the three funds have invested in 34 projects, including star enterprises such as Muxi Integrated, Chery Automobile, and Wuwenxinqiong.

With the successful investment in multiple popular projects by the funds in Beijing, Shanghai, and Shenzhen, proving that the model works, the social security fund's strategy has entered a stage of "replication and expansion" on a larger scale.

A state - owned enterprise insider told a reporter from Science and Technology Innovation Board Daily that the model of the social security science and technology innovation funds in Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Fujian, and Hubei is a "central - local cooperation" model. The cooperating institutions such as bank AICs and local state - owned enterprises are all institutions rich in local resources. This "central - local cooperation" model can not only pool more funds, but more importantly, it efficiently integrates the national strategic industrial map, local industrial resources, bank financial capital, and market - oriented investment capabilities (introduced through sub - funds).

Another key piece may be added in Central China

Specifically in terms of investment directions, the new round of social security science and technology innovation funds will probably be different from those in Beijing, Shanghai, and Shenzhen.

A reporter from Science and Technology Innovation Board Daily noticed that the projects invested by the three social security science and technology innovation funds in Beijing, Shanghai, and Shenzhen are not limited to their respective regions. For example, the Beijing social security science and technology innovation fund has invested in Wuwenxinqiong in Shanghai and Shanchuan Harmonic in Shenzhen, and the Shanghai social security science and technology innovation fund has also invested in Chengdu Maikang Biotechnology.

However, in the new round of social security science and technology innovation funds, the investment directions are combined with the industrial chain development of each province. For example, the Jiangsu Social Security Science and Technology Innovation Fund will focus on national strategic emerging industrial clusters, the "1650" industrial system in Jiangsu Province, the "51010" strategic emerging industrial clusters, the "1030" industrial chain system in Suzhou and its sub - fields.

In Hubei, the social security science and technology innovation fund precisely focuses on Hubei's characteristic industries and leading enterprises in optoelectronic information, automobile manufacturing, life sciences, high - end equipment, etc., serving the "three - pronged approach" of upgrading traditional industries, cultivating and expanding emerging industries, and making forward - looking layouts for future industries.

Currently, the new round of social security science and technology innovation funds is still in the first stage of implementation, and there are no investment activities yet. However, the above - mentioned provinces are all in rapid progress. Previously, Zhejiang planned to complete the establishment of six special funds and make the first project investment within this year. According to a reporter from Science and Technology Innovation Board Daily, the social security science and technology innovation fund in Hubei may set up sub - funds in three directions.

Moreover, the layout of the social security science and technology innovation funds has not stopped. In October this year, Anhui Guojin Company organized a special meeting to discuss the establishment of the Anhui Social Security Science and Technology Innovation Fund (AIC Fund).

The model discussed in Anhui, which combines local state - owned enterprises, AICs, and social security funds, is the same as that of the above - mentioned provinces. After Hubei, Anhui is expected to become the second key piece of the social security fund's layout in Central China, which is not accidental. In recent years, Anhui has emerged as a "science and technology innovation dark horse" due to its outstanding performance in strategic emerging industries such as new energy vehicles, artificial intelligence, integrated circuits, and photovoltaics. Anhui, which has a number of leading enterprises such as iFlytek, Sungrow Power Supply, Gotion High - tech, and Changxin Memory Technologies, has industrial endowments that are highly consistent with the direction of the social security fund's support for scientific and technological innovation.

If the social security science and technology innovation fund is successfully established in Anhui, from Shanghai, Jiangsu, and Zhejiang in the Yangtze River Delta to Hubei and Anhui in Central China, the social security fund will have built a "science and technology innovation investment belt" along the Yangtze River, the economic artery of China. This is not only conducive to the smooth flow of innovation factors such as funds, technologies, and talents along the river, but also can strengthen the synergy effect of the upstream and downstream industrial chains through the capital link. For example, the R & D results in Shanghai, the advanced manufacturing in Jiangsu, and the industrialization and application scenarios in Anhui can find more efficient connection paths within this capital network.

From 1.5 billion yuan in Beijing, Shanghai, and Shenzhen to 140 billion yuan in the four provinces this year, the "chessboard" of the social security science and technology innovation funds is continuously expanding. After Hubei, which region, such as Anhui, Chengdu - Chongqing, or Xi'an, will become the "new target" of the social security science and technology innovation funds is also a focus of the industry.

This article is from the WeChat official account "Venture Capital Daily", author: Yu Shiqi. It is published by 36Kr with authorization.