(Yicai) Sept. 14 -- Eleven Beijing city authorities have issued a joint policy package to support technology unicorns, or privately held startup companies worth at least USD1 billion, including a fast-track service for when they apply to go public on the city’s stock exchange.

Applications by unicorns for initial public offerings on the two-year-old Beijing Stock Exchange will be reviewed immediately and the shares floated as soon as approval is granted, according to the Ten Measures for Unicorns that the authorities published yesterday.

Support will be provided to qualified unicorns based on their undertaking of major national- and municipal-level science and technology projects, according to the measures. Financing of as much as CNY100 million (USD13.8 million) will be granted to those that undertake “projects of national strategic importance” in original innovation and key core technological breakthroughs.

The new policy package encourage specialized organizations, including institutional investors and consultants from China and abroad, to actively look for and cultivate unicorns. These organizations will receive policy support depending on their role and effectiveness.

Under the measures, the government of China’s capital will also coordinate financial funds, guidance funds, and capital whose controlling shareholders are state-owned assets, as well as social capital to jointly invest in high-growth innovative unicorns.

Furthermore, Beijing will help banks join hands with venture capital firms to start a ‘loans + external direct investment’ business for unicorns, offering them long-term and low-cost financial support.

The authorities behind the measures include the Beijing Municipal Science & Technology Commission, the Administrative Commission of Zhongguancun Science Park, the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Local Financial Regulation, the State-Owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission, the Beijing Municipal Commission of Development and Reform, and other local financial agencies.

Editor: Martin Kadiev