Recently, the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress reviewed and adopted the “Asset Valuation Law,” thereby establishing for the first time the legal status of the asset valuation industry. This marks a milestone in the development of the asset valuation sector. The financial authorities and the asset valuation industry associations should proactively engage in studying and popularizing the law, earnestly implement the “Asset Valuation Law,” and work closely with relevant departments to jointly promote the healthy and sustainable development of the asset valuation industry.

　　 I. The promulgation of the “Asset Valuation Law” carries significant historical importance.

　　The promulgation of the “Asset Valuation Law” carries profound historical significance for China’s asset valuation industry as well as for the country’s economic and social development.

　　The promulgation of the “Asset Valuation Law” is an important manifestation of implementing the spirit of the Fourth Plenary Session of the 18th Central Committee, which calls for comprehensively advancing the rule of law. Having laws to follow is a fundamental requirement for governing the country according to law, and the “Asset Valuation Law” represents a significant step forward in the development of the asset valuation industry. 30 The first law promulgated this year has achieved the goal of promoting the asset valuation industry’s development in accordance with the law. Meanwhile, the “Asset Valuation Law” was drafted under the responsibility of the Legislative Affairs Commission of the National People’s Congress, fully demonstrating the leading role played by the NPC and its Standing Committee in legislative work.

　　The promulgation of the “Asset Valuation Law” is an urgent necessity for safeguarding the order of the socialist market economy. Asset valuation, with its functions of value discovery and value measurement, serves as a professional force that promotes the optimal allocation of resources in the market and plays an indispensable and vital role in maintaining market order and fostering fair competition. The enactment of the “Asset Valuation Law” will help better leverage the professional role of asset valuation and provide crucial support for comprehensively deepening reform—particularly in deepening state-owned enterprise reform, improving and perfecting the capital market, and promoting the development of a mixed-ownership economy.

　　The promulgation of the “Asset Valuation Law” is an urgent necessity for preventing the loss of state-owned assets. Currently, the asset valuation business... 80% The above pertains to the valuation of state-owned assets. As the reform of state-owned enterprises continues to deepen, activities such as capital transfers, mergers and acquisitions, restructuring, and equity transactions between state-owned enterprises and non-state-owned enterprises are becoming increasingly frequent. Conducting asset valuations of the capital involved in these integration processes is not only essential for gaining the trust of non-state-owned enterprises but also a requirement for the management of state-owned assets. By enacting legislation to further strengthen the management of asset valuation and standardize valuation practices, we can fully leverage the critical role of asset valuation as a safeguard against the loss of state-owned assets.

　　The promulgation of the “Asset Valuation Law” is an urgent necessity for the standardized development of the asset valuation industry. The asset valuation industry is an important modern service sector that, after years of development, has gradually taken shape. Six major professional categories, It has made significant contributions to China’s socio-economic development. However, due to the lack of legal regulations, the industry faces prominent challenges such as uneven quality of institutions and personnel, and difficulties in holding entities accountable for their assessments. These issues are hindering the industry’s healthy and sustainable development, making it urgently necessary to enact legislation to provide proper regulation.

　　 II. The “Asset Valuation Law” fully reflects the forward-looking nature of reform.

　　The “Asset Valuation Law” unifies key aspects such as valuation professionals, valuation institutions, valuation procedures, industry associations, supervisory management, and legal responsibilities, fully reflecting the State Council’s reform requirements of streamlining administration, delegating power, combining regulation with service optimization. In particular, regarding many areas—including the admission of institutional personnel—the law introduces significant breakthroughs in the existing system, aligning with the direction of market-oriented reform and fully embodying the legislative spirit of reform and innovation.

　　 Removing barriers and clarifying responsibilities will greatly boost the vitality of market entities. Assessment institutions and professional appraisers are the backbone of the asset valuation service sector, and whether their vitality can be effectively stimulated is crucial to the industry’s development. The “Asset Valuation Law,” guided by market-oriented principles, aims to truly make assessment institutions and professional appraisers the main players in the market. One is Further enhance the independence of the valuation industry, clearly stipulate that valuation institutions and professional valuers are legally protected when conducting business in accordance with the law, and at the same time, specify that the commissioning party must assume corresponding rights and obligations. Second is Divide the appraisal business into statutory appraisal business and non-statutory appraisal business. Except for special requirements in legally mandated appraisal services, qualified individuals may independently choose to enter the appraisal industry. Individuals with specialized appraisal knowledge and practical experience may freely join appraisal institutions and carry out appraisal activities in accordance with the law—no longer treating passing an examination as the sole pathway to professional practice. 。 Third is The restrictions on assessment agencies engaging in various types of appraisal services—such as corporate valuation, land appraisal, and real estate appraisal—are significantly reduced. Requirements regarding the names of appraisal agencies and the number of qualified appraisal professionals they employ are further relaxed. After filing with the administrative authorities, appraisal agencies will be free to pursue all kinds of appraisal projects in accordance with the law. 。 Fourth is A unified assessment procedure has been established, providing a systematic framework for valuing various types of assets. While promoting greater flexibility and vitality, the legal responsibilities of appraisal professionals and appraisal institutions have been further clarified, and penalties for illegal activities have been significantly intensified.

　　 Strengthen services and enforce strict self-discipline, continuously enhancing the role of industry associations. In line with the spirit of reform, the “Asset Valuation Law” focuses on strengthening the responsibilities of asset valuation industry associations, stimulating their intrinsic vitality and development momentum, enhancing their service functions, and further leveraging the unique advantages and rightful role of these associations in economic and social development. First, in accordance with the principle of decoupling industry associations from administrative regulatory bodies, the law emphasizes that asset valuation industry associations are self-regulatory organizations that carry out self-disciplinary management in compliance with the law. Second, national-level asset valuation industry associations are mandated by state regulations to organize and implement a nationwide unified examination for qualification of appraisers, thereby clarifying the relationship between industry associations and relevant government departments in exam administration. Third, the law assigns specific duties to asset valuation industry associations, including handling complaints against members and standardizing members’ professional conduct, ensuring that industry associations have a legal basis for fulfilling their responsibilities.

　 　Shift the approach, strengthen regulation, and streamline administrative management functions. The “Asset Valuation Law,” in accordance with the reform requirements of streamlining administration and delegating power while strengthening regulation, has made significant adjustments to the administrative management of asset valuation. First, it implements the spirit of streamlining administration and delegating power. The establishment of assessment agencies will shift from post-approval to filing-based management, and the threshold for setting up assessment agencies will be relaxed, allowing more assessment professionals to start their own businesses freely. . Second, For non-statutory appraisal services, the market independently selects appraisal institutions and appraisal professionals; the law does not impose any additional mandatory requirements. Third, the local people's governments at or above the prefectural-level shall clearly designate their respective administrative departments responsible for assessment oversight to exercise supervision and management over the assessment industry within their administrative jurisdictions, according to their respective division of responsibilities. Fourth, in line with the requirement of combining deregulation with regulation, we will strengthen the supervisory and management responsibilities of administrative departments and grant them the authority to impose penalties on assessment professionals, assessment institutions, and assessment associations.

　　 III. Implement the “Asset Valuation Law” effectively to better serve economic and social development.

　　The "Asset Valuation Law," after ten years of painstaking effort, is the result of the hard work and dedication of relevant departments such as the Finance and Economic Committee and the Legal Work Committee of the National People's Congress, as well as the enhanced understanding and coordinated cooperation among various administrative departments for asset valuation under the State Council. It also reflects the long-awaited aspirations of thousands of institutions and hundreds of thousands of professionals in the asset valuation industry, and embodies the collective efforts of all sectors of society. Fiscal departments at all levels must attach great importance to the implementation of the "Asset Valuation Law," organize thorough study and publicity efforts, promote the healthy development of the asset valuation industry, and provide even higher-quality services to support economic and social development.

　　 The financial authorities should properly play their role in administrative guidance. First, each assessment and administrative department should perform its own duties and assume its own responsibilities, strengthen organizational learning and collaborative coordination, and jointly implement the “Asset Valuation Law.” Second, taking the promulgation of the law as an opportunity, we should further liberate our thinking, promptly adapt to the new legal requirements, revise and improve relevant management systems, and actively promote reform in the asset valuation industry. Third, through various means such as integrating internal resources, enhancing the level of information-based management, and government procurement of services, we should earnestly fulfill our administrative responsibilities in the asset valuation industry by focusing on key areas such as institutional standardization and strengthening supervision during and after the event.

　　 The China Association of Asset Appraisers and local asset appraisal industry associations should accelerate their transformation. First, in accordance with the relevant requirements of the “Asset Valuation Law,” we must accelerate the establishment and improvement of a comprehensive system of mechanisms covering examination and training, practice standards, supervision and inspection, and member management, thereby effectively taking on the new responsibilities conferred by law. Second, we must strengthen the internal development of industry associations themselves, respect the laws of the market economy, abide by industry association norms, and enhance our capacity to provide high-quality services to members, including asset valuation agencies and professional asset valuers. Third, we must earnestly fulfill our self-regulatory oversight duties, playing a vital role in safeguarding the order of the market economy and promoting social equity and fairness. Fourth, we must fully leverage the positive role of industry associations as a bridge and link between the government and the industry, thereby better serving the country’s economic and social development.

Asset valuation agencies and asset valuation professionals should enhance their awareness and proactiveness. First, we must correctly recognize the significant historical opportunities created by the “Asset Valuation Law.” We need to deeply study and grasp the essence of the law’s spirit, vigorously foster a positive atmosphere of learning about, understanding, and abiding by the law, and effectively implement the “Asset Valuation Law.” Second, we must continuously enhance the quality and standards of asset valuation services. Grounded in the overall context of national economic and social development and the development of the asset valuation industry, we should start with ourselves and begin now—adhering to lawful and standardized practice, upholding integrity in our professional conduct, exercising our rights and fulfilling our obligations in accordance with the law, and accepting self-regulatory management by industry associations as well as administrative oversight by regulatory authorities. Third, we must better serve statutory valuation tasks. Asset valuation agencies and asset valuers should strengthen their research on national economic policies, providing even better service to statutory valuation tasks such as the valuation of state-owned assets and the valuation of listed companies, thereby playing an important role in further deepening state-owned enterprise reform, preventing the loss of state-owned assets, and safeguarding the rights and interests of all types of shareholders.

( 2016 Year 07 Moon 18 Daily People's Daily No. 10 Edition: Author is the Party Secretary and Minister of the Ministry of Finance.