On 29 September 2013, China officially launched the pilot free trade zone in Shanghai. At the inauguration ceremony, 25 Chinese and overseas companies together with 11 financial institutions were the first batch of entities granted permission to register in the trial zone.
The Shanghai FTZ will first cover a non-contiguous geographic area of 28.78 square kilometres in the city's Pudong New Area, consisting of the following four existing bonded zones: Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone, Waigaoqiao Free Trade Logistics Park, Pudong Airport Comprehensive Free Trade Zone, and Yangshan Free Trade Port Area. It is believed that it may eventually expand to cover the entire Pudong district which covers 1,210.4 sq. km.
