The Chinese government needs to take a step back from business decisions for the country’s entrepreneurs to continue the country’s development as a market economy, according to a panel of top Chinese entrepreneurs.  

Business leaders speaking ahead of the country’s summit for entrepreneurs on 9 December said that for the process from a planned economy to a market economy to be completed, the government should not interfere in market behaviour.

Three decades of reform and opening up of the country has not just turned China into one of the world's biggest economies - it has also led to a millionaire boom. Entrepreneurs make up the vast majority of Chinese high net worth individuals, with some estimates putting the figure as high as 95 per cent.

For the entrepreneurial spirit to stay alive, more competition and greater integrity required, according to a series of interviews by China Entrepreneur Magazine.

But less government interference does not mean a predatory free-for-all. Jin Zhiguo, president of Tsingtao Brewery, argues that entrepreneurs, who drive the market agenda, should create “green and clean” wealth.

Liu Chuanzhi, chairman of the board of Lenovo Holdings, says that companies should comply with the national and social interest when making decisions. “It damages market integrity when they do something to their own advantage for enterprise or themselves while actually damaging society,” he said.