Lu Hongjun: Empower Chinese financial theory and practice with greater discourse power and regulatory authority

Today, the world has entered multiple overlapping eras characterized by chaotic interweaving, rapid technological iteration, and reshaped power structures. Financial forms, value systems, and development models are undergoing comprehensive iterative innovation. As the originator of the “chain finance” theory, Lu Hongjun, President of Shanghai International Finance College, noted that “chain finance” is a paradigm-revolution that spans the remaking of finance. Against this backdrop, financial talent in the new era will shoulder entirely new historical missions.

On April 6, the 2026 International Financial Center Forum academic conference hosted by Shanghai International Finance College was successfully held at the Lu Jia Zui Reception Hall in the Shanghai Jin Mao Tower.

The conference invited experts from international financial institutions to deliver specialized academic presentations on frontier developments in international capital markets and the reconfiguration of professional capabilities. Lu Hongjun delivered the theme report titled “The Chain Finance Paradigm Revolution and New Missions for Financial Talent,” providing insights and practical guidance for the high-quality development of the Shanghai International Financial Center and talent cultivation.

Lu Hongjun, President of Shanghai International Finance College, author of the monograph《Chain Finance》

The Arrival of Multiple Eras

In the academic report titled《Frontiers of International Capital Markets and the Reconfiguration of Professional Capabilities》, experts from international financial institutions, drawing on their own more than twenty years of experience in international financial institutions, briefly mapped the industry’s historical context and governance framework. They focused on analyzing the core risks facing the industry today, forecasting future development trends, and, while also sharing practical experience, offered profound enlightenment and strong encouragement to practitioners in the financial sector and students who are about to enter the financial field. They also provided highly valuable reference and lessons for the industry’s development.

Lu Hongjun pointed out that in 2026, the global economy will remain steady amid differentiation. AI technology-driven capital expenditure has become an important growth engine. At the same time, he reminded the market to pay attention to core risks such as potential pullbacks in AI valuations, the fragmentation of geopolitical and economic dynamics, pressure from sovereign debt, and policy uncertainty.

He emphasized that under the dual wave of financial globalization and digitalization, financial professionals must accelerate capability iteration and build professional competencies and a global perspective that fit the new era.

Next, Lu Hongjun shared on the theme “The Chain Finance Paradigm Revolution and New Missions for Financial Talent,” explaining the core logic of the financial paradigm revolution in the digital economy era and the new missions for financial talent. He also simultaneously shared a brand-new monograph in the chain finance field that he has devoted years of research to, and systematically introduced the full process of research exploration—from the creation of chain finance theory to the gradual formation of a complete system.

Lu Hongjun noted that in 1994, at the first International Financial Center Symposium, he foresaw and put forward the idea that “talent competition is the main theme of international financial centers in the 21st century.” For 32 years, the world has moved from the era of globalization and peaceful development into multiple overlapping eras marked by chaotic interweaving, technological iteration, and the reshaping of the overall landscape. While the core logic of financial credit and risk remains unchanged, financial forms, value systems, and development models are undergoing comprehensive iterative innovation. The latest report from the IMF clearly states that tokenized finance will reconstruct the global market architecture and replace financial intermediaries. Chain finance is precisely the new financial paradigm that adapts to the “chaotic interweaving + digital finance” era.

Chain Finance Theory

In the autumn of 2012, at the Wharton Global Finance Leadership Forum in the United States in Philadelphia, Lu Hongjun first proposed the concept of establishing a chain finance theory framework, completing the conceptual creation from 0 to 1 and laying the foundation for research.

In this sharing, he introduced that the exploration of chain finance has mainly gone through three major core stages: 2012 to 2013, Wharton’s initial launch and concept chain-building; 2014 to 2018, global linkage and theoretical deepening, with trips back and forth to Shanghai, Silicon Valley, and Hong Kong to track frontier practices and refine the theoretical framework; and 2019 to 2026, system integration and completion of the monograph. By integrating frontier achievements such as Web3.0, AI, and quantum finance, he refined and formed a complete, new, and fully realizable financial paradigm. He pointed out that the monograph released this time is a comprehensive summary and systematic presentation of this long and in-depth research exploration process.

Lu Hongjun focused on explaining the three instances of “unplanned agreement” between chain finance theory, validating its foresight and scientific rigor.

First, at the level of the theoretical framework, it resonates across time and space with Robert Shiller, a Nobel Prize–winning economist. From different perspectives, both sides show a high degree of alignment across core dimensions such as understanding the times, risk responses, and financial reconstruction, laying a global academic foundation for chain finance.

Second, at the level of the technical model, in February 2006 Lu Hongjun was the first to propose the “capability money + Token” model. Later, on March 18 of the same year, Jensen Huang, founder of NVIDIA, proposed a new incentive model of “salary system + Token.” As a major global technology giant, he provided important validation for the model. The two once again jointly anchored the development direction of digital finance and human capital.

Third, at the level of application scenarios, resonating in step with Guizhou’s digital practices, the 2017 “block data” practice seamlessly matched the underlying logic of chain finance, forming an original model of “chain finance + block data,” providing support for research into the national sovereign digital currency.

In the core portion of the report, Lu Hongjun systematically expounded five major core theories of chain finance.

First, the original dual-chain parallel “hamburger structure” theory defines the iterative coexistence relationship among five major business forms: traditional finance, internet finance, blockchain finance, AI finance, and quantum finance,破解ing the industry’s conceptual chaos.

Second, it reveals the two-track parallel structure of global digital currencies and the pattern of two camps, dividing paths for sovereign digital currencies and market-based stablecoins. This provides theoretical support for responding to stablecoin shocks and advancing the internationalization of the renminbi.

Third, it builds a system for the core technologies and application scenarios of chain finance and proposes the original “capability money + Token meta” model, providing a practical methodology for scenario implementation and performance-based allocation.

Fourth, it proposes theoretical models for the chain-financialization of assets and the DAAR technical model. It clarifies the logic and progression of making data into assets, securitizing assets, and tokenizing securities—offering solutions for revitalizing existing asset pools and resolving debt-related risk.

Fifth, it deconstructs the root thinking behind the United States’ crypto-finance strategic ideas and summarizes the underlying logic of “positioning with exceptionalism, iterating with accelerationism, maintaining resolve with long-termism, and achieving an innovation-driven monopoly closed loop,” providing strategic thinking for global financial games.

Finally, Lu Hongjun once again emphasized that chain finance is a paradigm revolution that spans the remaking of finance. He encouraged financial talent in the new era to shoulder entirely new historical missions. One must both stay true to the初心 of serving the real economy with finance and dare to innovate and break through, and also cultivate deep expertise in frontier theory, so that China’s financial theory and practice will have stronger voice power and rule-making power on the global stage. It should ensure that China’s financial national team and international financial talent can play an even bigger role as a mainstay in the world’s financial system.

Reporter Li Xin

Text editor Zhu Nianying