Theme:AI-Risk-Innovation

Date:December 20, 2025

Venue:School of Business, Jiangnan University, Wuxi, China

Paper Submission Deadline:December 10, 2025

Notification of Acceptance:December 14, 2025

Registration Deadline:December 15, 2025

Call for Papers

I. Background

The Yangtze River Delta is one of the most dynamic, open, and innovation-driven regions in China, and a pioneering area for financial practice in the process of Chinese modernization. Wuxi, known as the “Pearl of Tai Lake”—where “Tai” means “Great” in Chinese—is both an important birthplace of Chinese national industry and commerce, and a fertile ground where the century-old spirit of industrial and commercial development meets modern financial innovation. Under the national strategy of Yangtze River Delta integration, Wuxi has demonstrated unique first-mover advantages and broad development space in areas such as the integration of science and technology finance with industry, green finance reform and innovation, as well as capital market opening-up and factor agglomeration.

The 2025 Great Lake Financial Forum, hereinafter also referred to as "Lake Forum," is hosted by the School of Business at Jiangnan University, and co-organized by China Finance Review International (CFRI), Modern Risk Society, and Dongwu Business School of Soochow University, will be held on December 20, 2025 at the Jiangnan University in Wuxi.

Lake Forum 2025 aims to respond to major national strategic needs and the broader process of Chinese modernization by focusing on cutting-edge issues in sci-tech finance, green finance, digital finance, capital markets, and risk management. It will explore how finance can better empower the real economy and support high-quality development.

Lake Forum 2025 will bring together scholars and experts from China and abroad to share their latest research and insights, foster intellectual exchange and dialogue, and strengthen academic collaboration. Through keynote speeches and parallel sessions, the forum encourages participants to present their work and exchange ideas, and to jointly explore pathways for the high-quality development of finance as a discipline in the new era.There is no registration fee for this conference. We look forward to the active participation of experts, scholars, and graduate students in this prestigious forum.

2. Topics of Interest

We welcome theoretical, empirical, and interdisciplinary research contributions. Topics include, but are not limited to:

Sci-Tech Finance and Corporate Governance: Sci-tech innovation and financial support systems; venture capital and private equity; firm innovation and total factor productivity.

Green Finance, ESG, and Sustainability: ESG investing, firm value, and corporate sustainability strategy; carbon finance markets and green finance instruments; transition finance and climate risk management.

Digital Finance and FinTech: FinTech regulation; big data and corporate governance; digital currencies and payment systems; applications of artificial intelligence in finance.

Risk Management and Actuarial Science: Systemic financial risk prevention; catastrophe risks and catastrophe bonds; innovations in reinsurance markets; asset allocation of insurance funds.

Stock Markets and Information Efficiency: Information disclosure and market reactions; price discovery and volatility mechanisms; high-frequency trading and market microstructure; behavioral finance and bounded rationality; market manipulation and regulatory effectiveness.

Macro Finance and Capital Markets: High-level opening-up of capital markets; monetary policy transmission; cross-border capital flows.

Bond Markets and Credit Risk: Bond pricing and default risk; local government debt management; credit rating mechanisms.

Financial Literacy, Household Finance, and Personal Financial Planning: Financial education and capability; household wealth, debt, and savings behavior; behavioral biases in personal finance; retirement planning and pension systems; the impact of digital tools on financial decision-making.

Real Estate Finance and Economics: Housing market dynamics and price determinants; real estate investment trusts (REITs) and securitization; mortgage markets and credit policies; the impact of macroprudential regulations on property markets.

3. Paper Submission and Awards

This forum will select the Best Paper(s) to recognize research achievements with innovation and academic value in the field of finance.

Best Paper Award: Sinofin CCER Database Research Excellence Award (RMB 5,000).

Language: Submissions in both English and Chinese are welcome.

Submission Email: [email protected]

Subject Line: “Lake Forum 2025 Submission”

Manuscript Requirements: Please indicate on the title page the following information for all authors: full name, institutional affiliation, mailing address, email address, and telephone number.

4. Selected Paper Recommendations

Selected high-quality papers will be recommended for fast-track review by the following journals:

China Finance Review International (CFRI)

Pacific-Basin Finance Journal (PBFJ) 

Risk Sciences

Asia-Pacific Journal of Risk and Insurance

A recommendation implies an opportunity for priority review and a potential fast-track process. Final publication decisions are strictly subject to the journals’ independent double-blind peer review processes.

5. Important Dates

Paper Submission Deadline: December 10, 2025

Notification of Acceptance: December 14, 2025 (via email)

Registration Deadline: December 15, 2025

Conference Date: December 20, 2025

6. Conference Hotels

Recommended Partner Hotel 1

Hotel Name:

Crowne Plaza Wuxi Taihu

Lake View King/Twin Room: RMB 490 (single breakfast), RMB 560 (double breakfast)

Superior King/Twin Room: RMB 380 (single breakfast), RMB 450 (double breakfast)

Address:

No. 1888 Taihu West Avenue, Binhu District, Wuxi City (Reception is located on the 1st Floor of the hotel)

Metro:

Line 4, Sports Center Station, Exit 1. (5 minutes' walk)

Reservation Contact:

Manager Huang: +86 13775201386

Recommended Partner Hotel 2

Hotel Name:

Jiangnan Four Seasons Hotel Wuxi

Deluxe King/Twin Room: RMB 380 (includes breakfast)

Superior Twin Room: RMB 328 (includes breakfast)

Address:

Building 1, No. 100 Jinxi Road, Binhu District, Wuxi City (Reception is located on the 1st Floor of the hotel)

Metro:

Line 1, Changguangxi Station, Exit 1. (2 minutes' walk)

Reservation Contact:

Manager Zhu: +86 18912390018

Recommended Partner Hotel 3

Hotel Name:

Jiangnan University Changguangxi Hotel

Standard King/Twin Room: RMB 310 (includes single breakfast), RMB 340 (includes double breakfast)

Address:

No. 1 Yuanxi Road, Binhu District, Wuxi City, Jiangsu Province (Reception is located on the 1st Floor of Building A)

Metro:

Line 1, Jiangnan University Station, Exit 1.

Reservation Contact:

Manager Sun: +86 13404258909

7. Organization

Conference Co-Chairs

Xujin Pu, Jiangnan University

Wenfeng Wu, Shanghai Jiao Tong University

Tong Yu, University of Cincinnati

Program Committee

Jie Cao, Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Hua Chen, University of Hawaii

Jian Chen, Fudan University

Yiwei Fang, Soochow University

Runhuan Feng, Tsinghua University

Michael A. Goldstein, Babson College

Stephen Gong, Xi'an Jiaotong-Liverpool University

Debao Hu, Renmin University of China

Alan Huang, University of Waterloo

Wei (Victor) Huang, University of Hawaii

Dongmin Kong, Huazhong University of Science and Technology

Lei Lu, University of Manitoba

Ronghua Luo, Southwestern University of Finance and Economics

Xujin Pu, Jiangnan University

Wuyong Qian, Jiangnan University

Lei Wang, Jiangnan University

Wenfeng Wu, Shanghai Jiao Tong University

Jingjian Xiao,University of Rhode Island

Yizhou Xiao, The Chinese University of Hong Kong

Xiong Xiong, Tianjin University

Honghai Yu, Nanjing University

Xuewei Yang, Nanjing University

Jianfeng Yu, Tsinghua University

Tong Yu, University of Cincinnati

Xintong Zhan, Fudan University

Qunzi Zhang, Shandong University

Eddie Zhao, UMass Boston

Xiaoneng Zhu, Shanghai University of Finance and Economics

Organizing Committee

Jiaqi Chen, Jiangnan University

Wenting Chen, Jiangnan University

Yunqi Fan, Jiangnan University

Hui Fu, Jiangnan University

Zhifang He, Jiangnan University

Wuyong Qian, Jiangnan University

Lei Wang, Jiangnan University

Yumei Xie, Jiangnan University

Nana Xu, Jiangnan University

Wei Xu, Jiangnan University

Fangzhao Zhou, Jiangnan University

Host and Co-Organizers

Host:

School of Business, Jiangnan University

Co-Hosts:

China Finance Review International (CFRI)

The Modern Risk Society

Dongwu Business School, Soochow University

Co-organizer:

Sinofin CCER Economic & Financial Database

8. Contact Information

Hui Fu

School of Business, Jiangnan University

[email protected]

Jie Yang

School of Business, Jiangnan University

[email protected]

Ning Tang

School of Business, Jiangnan University

[email protected]

Peiran Li

School of Business, Jiangnan University

[email protected]

Agenda (Provisional)

December 19, 2025
All Day	Registration
December 20, 2025 (Morning)
Opening Ceremony (08:30 – 9:00)
Distinguished Speaker Session I (09:00 – 10:45)
09:00 - 09:35	Prof. Wenfeng Wu(Shanghai Jiao Tong University)
09:35 - 10:10	Prof. Honghai Yu(Nanjing University)
10:10 - 10:45	Prof. Jie Cao(Hong Kong Polytechnic University)
Academic Parallel Sessions (Part I) (10:45 – 12:15)
10:45 - 12:15	Presentations by authors
Lunch Break (12:15 – 13:45)
December 20, 2025 (Afternoon)
Distinguished Speaker Session II (14:00 – 15:45)
14:00 - 14:35	Prof. Wei (Victor) Huang(University of Hawaii)
14:35 - 15:10	Prof. Xintong Zhan(Fudan University)
15:10 - 15:45	Peng Xiong(Fudan University, Western International Finance Institute)
Award Ceremony (15:45 – 15:55)
Academic Parallel Sessions (Part II) (15:55 – 17:55)
15:55 - 17:55	Presentations by authors
Dinner / Banquet (17:55 - 19:55)