Zhangjiagang, a port city in East China's Jiangsu province, held a cooperative conference in the city's economic & technological development zone (ZETDZ) and high-tech zone on July 23 to boost integration in the finance industry and promote economic growth.

A total of 19 agreements, worth over 10.2 billion yuan ($1.5 billion), were signed at the conference, covering the fields of industrial funds, bond financing, equity finance and finance leasing.

Additionally, some scaled companies like Shagang Group and Aoyang Technology Co inked cooperative deals with six innovative high-growth technology companies. Huang Ji, the mayor of Zhangjiagang city made a keynote speech at the conference. He spoke highly of the achievements the city has made in major projects and infrastructure construction. The city is on the fast track to industry upgrading and seeks for high-quality development.

In recent years the two zones played an important role in attracting investment. Now the area is home to eight listed companies, 20 companies listed on the New Third Board and more than 10 preparing to be listed.