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