High-tech zone reports sharp growth in IP pledge financing
2026-08-17 19:08:03
By Chen Si
Intellectual property (IP) pledge financing has expanded significantly in Yichang High-tech Zone, giving businesses more ways to turn intangible assets into capital.
In the first half of 2026, 20 local innovative enterprises secured 24 financing deals backed by patents and trademarks, totaling 414 million yuan (US$61.4 million), the Yichang High-tech Zone Market Supervision Administration said on August 7.
The figure was 31 percent higher than the total for all of 2025, with increases in both the number of participating enterprises and size of individual deals.
The zone is continuing to explore ways to use intellectual property to help businesses access working capital. This is particularly important for technology companies, which often have limited fixed assets to use as collateral and fewer financing options.
Intellectual property (IP) pledge financing has expanded significantly in Yichang High-tech Zone, giving businesses more ways to turn intangible assets into capital.
In the first half of 2026, 20 local innovative enterprises secured 24 financing deals backed by patents and trademarks, totaling 414 million yuan (US$61.4 million), the Yichang High-tech Zone Market Supervision Administration said on August 7.
The figure was 31 percent higher than the total for all of 2025, with increases in both the number of participating enterprises and size of individual deals.
The zone is continuing to explore ways to use intellectual property to help businesses access working capital. This is particularly important for technology companies, which often have limited fixed assets to use as collateral and fewer financing options.
The High-tech Zone holds a four-party IP match-making session for government, banks, enterprises and service providers. Photo provided by Yichang High-tech Zone Market Supervision Administration
The zone has established a four-party coordination mechanism involving market regulatory authorities, financial institutions, enterprises, and professional IP service providers, with each playing a specific role in the financing process.
Market regulatory authorities coordinate the overall process and resources, while financial institutions provide IP-backed credit products and streamline approval procedures. Enterprises submit financing applications and cooperate with asset evaluations and pledge registration. Professional service providers assist with IP verification, preliminary valuations, and pledge registration.
The coordination has streamlined evaluation, pledge registration, and risk review, creating a more integrated financing process.
The zone also regularly holds practical training sessions on IP pledge financing to guide enterprises through the process. Representatives from financial institutions and IP service providers visit businesses in industrial parks and develop financing solutions based on their specific needs, while also providing support with asset assessments and application documents.
Several major IP pledge financing deals have been completed this year.
The zone’s first trademark-backed loan, worth 4.05 million yuan, was issued in January, while a company received a 131 million yuan patent-backed credit line in June.
Wang Ying, Li Zhanghui also contributed to this story
