Jul 17, 2012
HKEx debuts first RQFII A-share ETF
Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing (HKEx) has launched the first renminbi qualified foreign
institutional investor (RQFII) A-share exchange-traded fund (ETF) on its domestic equity market.
The
new instrument – the the ChinaAMC CSI 300 Index ETF– is managed by China Asset
Management (Hong Kong) Limited and is based on the CSI 300 Index –a capitalisation-weighted
index that replicates the performance of 300 stocks on the Shanghai and
Shenzhen stock exchanges.
RQFII status lets institutional investors outside China
place investments in offshore renminbi deposits back into Chinese capital
markets.
The
ChinaAMC CSI 300 Index ETF will is the first physical ETF outside the mainland
market to invest directly in A-shares and the first A-share outside the mainland
to trade in RMB.
The
listing of this ETF on HKEx will increase the total number of listed ETFs to 93
and the number of ETF managers to 16.
“This
is an important development to further strengthen HKEx’s position as leading
international market to trade RMB products by offering more direct access to
Hong Kong and international investors to gain exposure to the mainland A-share
market,” said Calvin Tai, head of trading, HKEx.
The first RMB ETF was debuted on the exchange in February as a gold ETF.
By
Sophie Pallier