American multinational investment management firm BlackRock Inc. has reportedly raised 6.68 billion yuan (approximately USD 1.03 billion) for its new mutual fund in China’s 3.6 trillion mutual fund market.
BlackRock said its newly launched China equity fund had attracted these funds from more than 111,000 investors, making it the first foreign asset manager to operate a wholly-owned business in China.
The BlackRock China New Horizon Mixed Securities Investment Fund, which was launched on 30th August, did not accept subscriptions on 3rd September, a week earlier than scheduled.
Rachel Lord, BlackRock’s chair and head of Asia-Pacific expressed they are proud of attaining this milestone for the China fund management business and are grateful for investors' tremendous support.
The world's largest asset manager's fundraising is being closely monitored as more global competitors plan to enter China's fast-growing but competitive mutual fund sector. Fidelity International is establishing a mutual fund subsidiary in China, while VanEck, Neuberger Berman, and Schroders PLC have also sought to open retail fund sales offices in China.
It is worth noting that Billionaire financier George Soros had dubbed BlackRock's investment in China a "tragic blunder" that would jeopardize the U.S. and other democracies' national security interests.
Soros's comment elicited no response from BlackRock. However, CEO Larry Fink had previously stated that he sees the Chinese market as an opportunity that cannot be missed.
Chi Zhang, GM of Shanghai-based BlackRock Fund Management Co., mentioned that the asset manager was committed to providing long-term investment possibilities for Chinese investors, leveraging its track record in China A-shares.
BlackRock had entered China more than 15 years ago, has a minority-owned Chinese mutual fund venture, and recently established a majority-owned Chinese wealth management company.
In addition to BlackRock, Pictet, Goldman Sachs (GS), and Fidelity are also encouraging investors to remain involved in the Chinese market, but with caution.
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