Journalists have observed that since September, banks such as China Construction Bank, Ping An Bank, and CITIC Bank have successively obtained invention patent authorizations, mainly focusing on fields like data processing and information protection.

According to the "Analysis Report on Technological Innovation Driving Digital Transformation in Chinese Financial Institutions" (hereinafter referred to as the "Report"), the number of patent applications led by financial institutions in China has broken through 91,000, with an average annual patent application volume of about 19,000 in recent three years. Technological innovation has maintained a stable growth at a high base, promoting high-quality development of finance led by technological self-innovation.

Interviewees pointed out that banks, as financial institutions that handle a large number of financial transactions and sensitive customer information, are constantly seeking new technological means to enhance their information security level. To protect customer privacy, guard against cyber attacks, and prevent data leaks, more and more banks are investing resources in technological research and development and applying for patents related to information security.

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Public information shows that on September 11th, China Construction Bank newly obtained an invention patent authorization, with the patent named "Data Processing Method, Device, System, Equipment, and Storage Medium". The implementation of this invention is based on the deployment planning of the data processing system architecture, using DRDA technology to achieve the scheduling execution of batch jobs on the host platform by the open platform, minimizing the impact on existing business of the host platform.

For example, on September 7th, Ping An Bank obtained an invention patent authorization, with the patent named "Data Query Method, System, Computer Equipment, and Storage Medium". The aforementioned method, by receiving recorded data through the query platform and processing the recorded data, subsequently completes the client's data query request based on the processed recorded data, avoiding the client's direct data query to the business server, reducing the consumption of hardware resources on the business server, and enhancing the security performance of the business server.

Overall, the patent application situation of financial institutions shows a rapid growth trend. The "Report" shows that by the end of 2023, Chinese financial institutions have applied for more than 91,000 patents (already published). Since 2015, the patent application of financial institutions has shown a clear acceleration trend, with 1001 pieces in 2015 for the first time breaking through a thousand, and 13,359 pieces in 2020, a 45-fold increase compared to ten years ago.

Li Yongye, a patent engineer at Beijing Huaxia Taihe Intellectual Property Co., Ltd., pointed out in an interview with journalists that digital transformation has become a global trend, and the information security, data security, risk control management, and user experience of financial products are becoming more and more important. On the one hand, having a strong patent portfolio can demonstrate the company's high level of innovation ability, professional knowledge, technical capability, and financial strength, and can also create a positive reputation for the company, which is a major motivation for financial institutions to apply for patents; on the other hand, the process of intellectual property protection (such as patent application, trademark layout, software application, trade secrets, etc.) helps companies sort out and inventory their own product lines and technical lines, and carry out classified management, which will also serve as intangible assets for financial institutions.

The "Report" points out that financial patents, as the main carrier of technology, the increase in their application volume significantly promotes the growth of total factor productivity in the financial industry and even the national economy. From a direct impact perspective, the increase in financial patent applications will enhance the output efficiency of the financial industry; from an indirect impact perspective, the changes in the financial industry brought about by financial patents based on new quality productive forces, through multiple channels, profoundly affect the changes in the economy and industry, and promote the improvement of total factor productivity in the national economy. At the same time, such changes will also structurally affect the financial industry itself, forming an end-to-end virtuous closed loop.

In the view of Wang Shiqiang, a senior researcher at Bingjian Technology Research Institute, there are multiple reasons for financial institutions to apply for patents. Having patents allows them to apply for high-tech enterprises, enjoy tax rate preferences and financial subsidies. High-tech enterprises can levy corporate income tax at a rate of 15%, which is significantly reduced compared to the general enterprise tax rate of 25%. In addition, having a large number of patents is beneficial for financial companies to expand their reputation and improve their opportunities to participate in government projects and cooperate with other institutions.Information Security Field Gains Attention

Looking at the patents applied for by banks, they mainly involve data governance and privacy protection.

Li Yongye analyzed that financial institutions' patent applications are mainly concentrated in the following three areas: First, in the financial business scenario, risk control identification and prediction (involving both toB and toC, including scenarios such as financing, credit, transfers, and dealing with emergencies). The main technical benefits are to enhance the security of financial business or to improve the accuracy and processing efficiency of related models. Second, data processing in the direction of financial product trading, operations, and maintenance, with the main improvement direction being to improve data processing efficiency, save labor costs, reduce manual operations to automated processing, enhance high-concurrency processing capabilities, and system stability, etc. Generally, it combines computer technology, AI technology, image recognition technology, voice recognition and processing technology, big data analysis, microservices, distributed computing, cloud services, blockchain technology, database technology, etc. Third, the field of information security. In the era of big data, the value and sensitivity of information make information security issues particularly important. With the accumulation and transmission of massive amounts of data, protecting sensitive information of individuals and enterprises becomes increasingly critical. Banks, as financial institutions handling a large number of financial transactions and customer sensitive information, are constantly seeking new technical means to enhance their information security level. To protect customer privacy, prevent cyber attacks, and prevent data leaks, many banks have begun to invest more resources in technology research and development and apply for patents related to information security.

Dou Shufang, Managing Director of Bank of America and Head of Global Treasury Management in China, said: "The banking industry is undergoing a profound change, and advanced technology brings more comprehensive services, simplifying treasury management business. Bank of America's annual technology investment is $12 billion, and the patent portfolio has grown nearly 70% over the past five years, reaching 6,582. Among the 644 special technology categories obtained by Bank of America in 2023, 28% are in the field of information security, and 18% are in artificial intelligence and machine learning for financial services."

"Currently, in financial institutions, most patent applications are concentrated in enterprises with strong funds and high R&D levels, and it is expected that this trend will continue in the future; the number of patent applications in the field of financial technology is expected to continue to advance steadily, and later patent operations (such as patent transfer, patent licensing, etc.) and value transformation may have new developments." said Li Yongye.

The report points out that the service experience upgrade, compliance security protection, and economic benefits growth brought by the innovation and development of digital finance are accelerating, and strengthening cooperation among large banks, technology-based financial institutions, and technology companies has become the core direction of high-quality development of finance and technology layout in the new era.