Abstract: With the panel data of provincial large samples from 1978 to 2010, this paper employs the lag-adjusted panel data model to test the influences of the different regional financial developments at China’s provincial level on the differences of regional economic growth. The results show that in the long run, China’s regional financial development and regional economic growth both tend to converge. In the meanwhile, once the difference of the regional financial development has been reduced by 1%, the difference of the regional economic growth will reduce by about 0.214%. On one hand, this has verified that since China has implemented reform and opening-up policy, each province has made remarkable progresses both in the financial development and the economic growth. On the other hand, it also shows that China’s economic growth has been supported by financial development. However, as for specific provinces, this support has brought forth some different effects among the regions.

Key words: financial development; economic growth; convergence