CITIC SEC: National Data Group Established; Attention to Opportunities in Scarcity Data Circulation and Infra Construction

CITIC SEC: National Data Group Established; Attention to Opportunities in Scarcity Data Circulation and Infra Construction CITIC SEC released a research report stating that the National Data Group has been officially established, positioned as a national-level market-oriented entity for the development and utilization of data resources, aimed at strengthening central-local and cross-industry data resource coordination. The bank believes that application companies mastering scarce industry data resources such as medical insurance, as well as relevant companies whose existing businesses cover Infra construction such as trusted data spaces and data trading platforms, are expected to benefit first. CITIC SEC's main views are as follows: Event: National Data Group officially established According to Xinhua News Agency, on October 20, 2026, National Data Group Co., Ltd. was established in Xiong'an New Area, Hebei, with data resource development and utilization as its main responsibility and core business, aimed at unlocking the value of data elements, serving artificial intelligence development, and prospering the data industry ecosystem. According to the official WeChat account of the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council, the group was established with the approval of the State Council, and SASAC performs the investor responsibilities on behalf of the State Council. The National Data Group is positioned as a national-level market-oriented entity for data resource development and utilization, and is expected to strengthen central-local and cross-industry data resource coordination According to C114 Communication Network, the group is jointly funded and established by the State Council, the Hebei Xiong'an New Area Management Committee, the three major telecom operators, State Grid, and China Southern Power Grid. The bank believes that after its establishment, the National Data Group will play a role in the following three aspects: 1) Strengthen collaboration with provincial and local data operation entities, connect the development and utilization needs of public data and industry data, improve cross-regional resource integration and market-oriented operation mechanisms, and reduce data circulation barriers between departments and industries; 2) Promote the construction and interconnection of infrastructure such as trusted data spaces, data registration and circulation service platforms, and strengthen coordination between data development and utilization and computing power services, reducing the cost of cross-entity access and joint development; 3) Promote the collaborative development and operation of data scattered across various industries under central SOEs, and through catalog connection, standard alignment, authorized use, and revenue-sharing mechanisms, facilitate joint development, orderly circulation, and value sharing of data products, and revitalize the existing data stock of central SOEs. Industry opportunity one: Break through high-value data circulation barriers and accelerate the value transformation of scarce government-side data resources such as medical insurance National-level operating entities are expected to promote, through central-local cooperation and industry coordination, the integrated utilization of data from central SOEs and government departments at all levels on the basis of lawful authorization, strengthening the application value of data in key areas such as medical insurance. According to the official website of the National Healthcare Security Administration, the 2025 National Smart Healthcare Security Competition has explored the integration of desensitized medical insurance data from the Yangtze River Delta with some public data from Shanghai to support algorithm development and model training, with application directions covering innovative drug R&D, real-world research, medical insurance fund supervision, etc., indicating that cross-departmental and cross-regional data collaboration already has a practical foundation and is expected to further drive demand for data governance, privacy computing, model development, and professional operations in the future. The bank believes that relevant enterprises with state-owned backgrounds and scarce professional-domain data resources are expected to benefit first, and the value of their data resources is expected to be fully activated. Industry opportunity two: Further stimulate local demand for the construction and operation of special projects such as trusted data spaces In terms of construction goals, the "Trusted Data Space Development Action Plan (2024-2028)" released by the National Data Administration in November 2024 proposed building more than 100 trusted data spaces by 2028; according to the pilot list announced by the National Data Administration, the first batch of trusted data space pilots totals 63, including 13 cities, 22 industries, and 28 enterprise projects; based on estimates of more than 350 recommended pilot projects, the National Data Administration expects the total investment scale of related projects to exceed RMB 78 billion by 2028. According to the Beijing Property Rights Exchange Sunshine Procurement Platform, in August 2026, the tender for the Beijing Urban Trusted Data Space Platform construction section was released, with a budget of RMB 41.28 million, and the construction content includes a public data authorized operation platform, trusted development components, and industry space operations, etc., with bidding for representative city projects proceeding in an orderly manner. The bank believes that relevant companies whose existing businesses cover the construction of trusted data spaces and data trading platforms are expected to benefit in tandem. Risk factors: Policy change risk; trusted data space construction progress falling short of expectations; progress in the circulation of scarce industry data falling short of expectations; downstream customer demand falling short of expectations; insufficient matching between data products and customer needs; intensifying market competition.