BEIJING, June 17 (Xinhua) -- The Shanghai-London Stock Connect program opened for trading Monday as brokerage Huatai Securities became the first Chinese company to list in Britain via the long-awaited mechanism.

Under the stock connect mechanism, Shanghai-listed companies can list on the London Stock Exchange via Global Depositary Receipts (GDRs) issuance, while British companies can issue China Depositary Receipts (CDRs) on the Shanghai Stock Exchange.

The launch of the mechanism marks a crucial step in China's capital market opening-up and a major part of the China-Britain pragmatic cooperation in the financial sector, the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) said.

The mechanism would be of far-reaching significance to expand channels for cross-border investment and fund-raising, boost the development of both countries' capital markets, and encourage the building of Shanghai into an international financial hub, the CSRC said in a statement.