On September 2, the 2026 Opening Ceremony of Tsinghua University PBC School of Finance was held at the university’s Grand Auditorium, accompanied by the solemn national anthem.
Photo: The opening ceremony
Li Jinliang, Chair of the School Council, and Jiao Jie, Dean of the School, attended the ceremony, together with other school leaders, full-time faculty members, and heads of administrative departments. Also in attendance were Ding Zhijie, Director of the Research Institute of the People’s Bank of China (PBOC); Chen Hao, Deputy Director of the Institute; and Miao Yanliang, Chief Economist and Senior Managing Director of China International Capital Corporation Limited (CICC). More than 380 incoming students from the 2026 cohorts of the Ph.D. in Finance, Master of Finance, the Master of Sci-Tech and Finance program, Finance MBA, Finance EMBA, and AI+ programs participated in the ceremony.
Photo: Li Jinliang
Li Jinliang presided over the ceremony. On behalf of the School’s faculty and students, he extended a warm welcome and sincere congratulations to the incoming students as they began a new chapter of learning at Tsinghua PBCSF. He encouraged them to embrace this new beginning with ambition and perseverance, pursue their aspirations with dedication, and strive for personal and professional growth in their studies of finance.
Photo: Jiao Jie
In his opening address, titled “Upholding the Founding Mission of Tsinghua PBCSF and Advancing Excellence in Finance,” Jiao Jie extended a warm welcome to all incoming students and outlined the School’s four strategic priorities.
First, Tsinghua PBCSF will uphold Tsinghua University’s commitment to cultivating talent for China’s development as a leading financial power. The School will continue to refine its multi-tiered talent development system, deepen international cooperation, and cultivate outstanding innovators in finance. Second, the School will develop a distinctive academic tradition in finance rooted in China’s realities. It will conduct research in the five major areas of finance emphasized by the Chinese government and develop an independent knowledge system for finance grounded in China’s experience and practice. Third, the School will strengthen its role as a driver of transformation in the financial industry through financial technology. Leveraging Tsinghua University’s interdisciplinary strengths, it will pursue advances in frontier areas of fintech. Fourth, the School will foster an ecosystem for technology finance, strengthening the links among finance, technology, and industry to promote their coordinated development. These four strategic priorities reinforce one another and together support the School’s high-quality development. Jiao Jie encouraged students to carry forward the Tsinghua motto and the traditions of Tsinghua PBCSF, align their personal aspirations with China’s efforts to build a leading financial power, and grow into outstanding financial professionals ready to shoulder the responsibilities of their time. He called on them to work together in writing a new chapter in the development of Tsinghua PBCSF.
Photo: Ding Zhijie
Ding Zhijie congratulated the incoming students and extended his greetings to the faculty on the occasion of Teachers’ Day. Drawing on his three decades of experience in the financial sector, he reviewed the achievements of China’s financial industry since the launch of reform and opening up, highlighting the strategic importance the Party and the state attach to financial affairs. He encouraged students to take pride in the development of China’s financial sector while recognizing the responsibilities and sense of mission that come with their chosen profession. He offered three expectations for the incoming students. First, they should remain guided by their convictions, deepen their commitment to serving the country and its people through finance, and align their personal aspirations with China’s efforts to build a leading financial power. Second, they should embrace innovation and adapt to the transformation driven by financial technology, striving to become well-rounded financial professionals with a strong understanding of technology, industry, and global affairs. Third, they should connect theory with practice, conduct research grounded in China’s realities, and contribute to telling China’s financial story to the world. He encouraged the students to aspire to great goals, uphold strong moral principles, develop their capabilities, and embrace responsibility, becoming dedicated financial professionals for the new era.
Photo: Miao Yanliang
In a speech titled “Finance and Technological Revolutions: New Drivers of Growth and a New Order,” Miao Yanliang shared insights drawn from his years of research and teaching. He explained how finance and technological revolutions shape one another. Finance serves as a catalyst, accelerator, and selector in technological revolutions, providing capital to support innovation throughout its life cycle. In turn, technological revolutions profoundly reshape financial structures and the global monetary order through improvements in productive forces, transformations in relations of production, and the revaluation of the means of production. He noted that the world is at a critical juncture marked by technological transformation and the restructuring of the global order. He encouraged students to build a solid academic foundation during their studies and develop the knowledge and capabilities needed to navigate the evolving financial landscape and make meaningful contributions in the years ahead.
Photo: Incoming student representatives Yu Chao, Cai Yujie, Meng Jie, Li Jiawei, Ling Junjie, and Zhu Youyi (from left to right, top to bottom)
The ceremony continued with remarks by representatives of the incoming class: Yu Chao, an incoming Ph.D. student in Finance; Cai Yujie, an incoming Master of Finance student; Meng Jie, an incoming student in the Master of Sci-Tech and Finance program; Li Jiawei, an incoming student in the Cornell-Tsinghua dual-degree Finance MBA program; Ling Junjie, an incoming Finance EMBA student; and Zhu Youyi, an incoming student in the AI+ program. Drawing on their academic and professional backgrounds and personal experiences, the student representatives shared their perspectives on the financial industry, reflected on their motivations for joining Tsinghua PBCSF, and outlined their academic plans for the next stage of their journeys. Their remarks conveyed a shared commitment to making the most of their educational opportunities, strengthening their professional expertise, and contributing to China’s development as a leading financial power. They also reflected the aspirations and sense of responsibility of the next generation of finance professionals.
Photo: School leaders present certificates of recognition to donor representatives
The development of Tsinghua PBCSF has benefited from the support of organizations, businesses, and alumni committed to education and public welfare. Through donations supporting scholarships, research projects, and development funds, these partners have helped advance the School’s talent development and academic initiatives. An Education Contribution Award presentation was held during the ceremony. School leaders presented certificates of recognition to representatives of the Avenir(UK) Public Welfare Foundation, Sunshine Insurance Group, Shanghai Pudong Development Bank, Hangzhou Mijia Medical Technology Co., Ltd., and Wu Yanan, an alumnus of the Belt and Road Initiative Finance EMBA program, in recognition of their contributions to education and the development of the School.
The ceremony concluded with faculty members and students singing the Tsinghua University anthem. With the guidance of their teachers and the expectations placed upon them, the incoming students of the 2026 cohort have officially embarked on their academic journeys at Tsinghua PBCSF. They will put their knowledge into practice, contribute to China’s efforts to build a leading financial power, and write a new chapter in their lives.
