Taizhou's practice to issue coupons to help cover part of loan interests of local small and micro businesses was recently praised by the National Development and Reform Commission at a news conference on Sept 24.

As the birthplace of the private economy in China, Taizhou has been spearheading the reform of financial services for small and micro enterprises.

In 2019, the city in East China's Zhejiang province was designated a national pilot zone for the reform and innovation of financial services for small and micro businesses.

The local government started issuing the coupons from December last year to relieve financial burdens on enterprises caused by loan interests.

Small and micro enterprises are able to apply for them on a financing platform backed by the local government. As of June 30, the city's 12 banks had issued 102.7 million yuan ($15.8 million) worth of coupons that have benefitted 27,135 companies.

In December last year, Taizhou was ranked 24th among cities on the Chinese mainland in terms of financial competitiveness, according to a report jointly released by the China Capital Market Research Institute affiliated with the Securities Times and New Fortune magazines.