1. What the World Bank's Business Ready (B-READY) mainly assesses:

• Regulatory Framework Quality: The legislative quality of the corporate bankruptcy and reorganization procedures.
• Service Quality: The professionalism of bankruptcy courts, digitalization level, transparency and so on.
• Convenience: The time and costs of liquidation and reorganization procedures.

2. Key points, cases, and relevant legal policies (Coming soon)

3. What efforts have been made in Shanghai:

• Shanghai High People's Court has introduced specialized action plans for business environment construction for six consecutive years, launching more than 60 reform measures to facilitate liquidation and reorganization procedures.
• In 2021, the Standing Committee of Shanghai Municipal People's Congress formulated the Several Provisions of Pudong New Area of Shanghai Municipality on Improving the Market-oriented and Law-based Enterprise Bankruptcy System to promote Pudong to take the lead in the country in forming a modern enterprise bankruptcy system that adapts to high-quality development.
• In 2023, the Standing Committee of Shanghai Municipal People's Congress revised the Regulations on Optimizing the Business Environment in Shanghai, making it the first in the country to stipulate regulations on the special obligations of management before corporate bankruptcy, a special mechanism for the bankruptcy of small and micro enterprises, and the nomination of bankruptcy trustees by creditors, providing a legislative basis for the efficient handling of bankruptcy cases.
• Shanghai courts protect creditors' right to be informed, support creditors in appointing bankruptcy trustees, confirm bankruptcy and reorganization plans in accordance with the law, and supervise the implementation process. This approach has enabled numerous distressed companies to emerge from crisis and swiftly liquidate dead enterprises. The number of accepted bankruptcy cases increased from 198 in 2017 to 2,564 in 2023. The number of resolved cases surged from 105 in 2017 to 2,940 in 2023, with debts of more than 400 billion yuan ($55.6 billion) liquidated.
• Shanghai actively promotes the integration of policies and mechanisms for handling bankruptcy. In March 2023, the Shanghai High People's Court, in collaboration with 17 government departments, jointly issued a policy document outlining 35 specific measures across nine areas. It has established an online platform for information related to bankruptcy cases. Rules for the disposition of bankruptcy property have been introduced. The new regulations of "disposition first, then unseal" will be implemented to make the unseal and disposition of bankruptcy property more convenient.
• Shanghai courts proactively explore the deep integration of digital technology and bankruptcy procedures, developing and implementing an online case handling system for the entire bankruptcy process. Using online platforms for the auctioning of bankruptcy property has shortened property disposition time by 20 percent compared to offline disposition, with transaction costs being 50 percent lower.
• Continuous improvement of legislative systems and policy support has led to the constant enhancement of Shanghai's bankruptcy procedures in terms of improving efficiency and reducing costs. In 2017, the World Bank's Doing Business report noted that the average time for handling bankruptcy cases in Shanghai was 1.7 years. By 2023, the average time for Shanghai courts to handle bankruptcy cases has shortened to 1.2 years.
• As Shanghai's bankruptcy legal system continues to improve and be effectively implemented, the concept of "encouraging innovation, tolerating failure, and supporting rebirth" is gaining widespread recognition in society.

4. What Shanghai has achieved:

• According to the World Bank's Doing Business 2020 study, Shanghai ranks 51st globally in the "business insolvency" index.
• In the 2021 National Business Environment Assessment, Shanghai's bankruptcy Legislative Framework Quality Index indicator received full marks, earning recognition as the domestic best practice.
• In 2022, Shanghai courts explored two pilot reforms to optimize the business environment, allowing claimants to recommend the appointment of bankruptcy trustees, facilitating bankruptcy trustees to inquire about case-related information. These practices were promoted across the country.