Over its 300-year history, the Kuzbass Region has become one of the strongest industrial and coal mining areas. However, new environmental requirements stipulated by the Paris Agreement and the EU Energy Strategy require a new diversified and innovative economy, i.e. comfortable conditions for people to live and do business. The Strategy for Socio-Economic Development of Kuzbass through 2035 was approved by Regional Law No. 163‑OS on December 23, 2020. The Strategy covers human capital, ecology, reclamation water resources, digitalization, economy, investment, tourism, exhibitions, etc. All these aspects are highlighted in the monographs of the Strategy of the Kuzbass Region. The publications prove that a long-term strategy should combine traditional and novel competitive advantages of the region, which include hydrogen cluster, transport infrastructure, digitalization of business and other spheres, better environmental conditions, forest and land reclamation, sustainable use of water resources, as well as the importance of rebranding the region on the domestic and international arena.

The authors overview the issues of financing the realization of strategic priorities of Kuzbass development up to 2035 and for further perspective. Large-scale transformation of the regional economy requires significant financial resources while the capabilities of commercial banks are limited. So the main task of the article is to form an interrelated system of regional development institutions including that of the State Fund for Entrepreneurship Support of the Kemerovo region and the Fund for Strategic Investment Projects of Kuzbass, regional banks and the stock market which enable efficient redistribution of the required investment resources at all stages of the Strategy’s realization. It is suggested to develop the stock market by issuing infrastructure and commercial bonds at the Moscow stock exchange, by creating trading platforms in the regions or federal districts and by launching over-the-counter market in the Kemerovo region. The region can also support the regional issuers either by partial compensation of payments on corporate bonds or by regional development institutions’ guarantees on corporate bonds of Kuzbass enterprises. Such approach will allow attracting the funds of Kuzbass people and invest them within the region at a good rate. A crowd funding platform can become an additional tool for accumulating the funds. The authors explain the necessity of maintaining the integrity of priorities of financial system development and the interrelation of the strategies of the region, local authorities and businesses. Implementation of the concept of “clever specialization” will make it possible to choose strategic priorities reasonably, to contribute to the economy’s modernization and development of technology and fundamental research, to create new online platforms in cooperation with the scientific and educational centre of Kuzbass. The authors use Dr. V.L. Kvint’s methodology of strategizing in their work.

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