Fidelity International’s wholly foreign-owned enterprise, FIL Fund Management (China) Company Limited (“Fidelity Fund” or the “Company”), today announced that the Company will launch its first mutual fund in China on April 3.
The fund, which is called the Fidelity Pedigree 6-month Holding Period Equity Fund, will be available for Chinese investors through distribution channels including the Ant Fortune platform, Bank of China and CITIC Securities.
As the financial market further opens, more international asset managers are investing in the Chinese market. Fidelity Fund is one of the first foreign fully-owned asset management companies to win regulatory approval to launch a mutual fund business in China. It is also one of the first foreign fully-owned asset managers to partner with the Ant Fortune platform to enhance its digital operations.
Helen Huang, General Manager, FIL Fund Management (China) Company Limited, said: "As one of the first global asset managers to conduct a wholly-owned onshore mutual fund business in China, we aim to capitalise on Fidelity's extensive global experience and deepen our cooperation with local partners to help Chinese investors fulfil their long-term financial goals. Ant Fortune is a leading digital and smart wealth management platform in the industry. With the launch of Fidelity's first mutual fund on the platform, we are keen to leverage Ant Fortune to deliver an engaging, friendly and interactive digital investment experience for Chinese investors."
Since 2018, Fidelity International has cooperated with the Ant Fortune platform to produce the China Retirement Readiness Survey, which offers deep insights into overall retirement awareness and behaviours in China, as well as provides investor education.
To enhance its digital operations in the Chinese market and better engage with local investors in China, Fidelity Fund launched its corporate account Caifuhao on the Ant Fortune platform in February 2023, which attracted 204,000 followers in the first month. Through digital tools including livestream and discussion communities on the Ant Fortune platform,Fidelity promotes long-time investment philosophy and shares investor education content.
"The addition of Fidelity Fund to our platform marks a step forward in Ant Fortune's effort to expand our offerings," said Yuan Shen, head of Ant Fortune's open platform. "We will continue to provide Fidelity Fund and other partners with more diverse and efficient services by sharing our technologies and capabilities. This will not only improve user experience but also increase efficiency and reduce costs.”
Ant Fortune has been opening up its platform and technology capabilities to asset management companies. Launched in 2017 as a digital service window for financial institutions, Caifuhao has attracted over 150 asset management institutions to join. In 2021, Ant Fortune started to offer more digital tools for financial institution partners to better engage with users, including livestreaming and online community.