AXA Investment Managers registers fund unit amid Shanghai business revival push

Jun 2, 2022 | News

AXA Investment Managers has completed registration for a private fund unit in Shanghai, as Chinese regulators streamline processes to help foreign and local asset managers revive businesses amid Covid-19 outbreaks.

Other filings with the Asset Management Association of China (AMAC) also show that Shanghai subsidiaries of global asset managers including Neuberger Berman, Abrdn Plc, Winton and Barings finished fundraising for their local fund products during the city’s two-month lockdown, which ended on Wednesday.

AMAC, supervised by China’s securities watchdog, said last week that it would adjust filing and registration processes to help businesses overcome virus curbs and resume work.

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Among the measures, electronic signatures can replace company seals in fund registrations, while a new private fund is now allowed to complete fundraising 18 months after registration, compared with 12 months previously.

The Shanghai government on Monday unveiled a series of measures to reinvigorate the economy, including policies to encourage more foreign asset managers to launch cross-border funds, and set up regional investment centres in the city.

AXA IM, the fund unit of French insurer AXA, registered a wholly-owned private fund management company in Shanghai on May 30, according to a filing with AMAC, enabling it to launch local fund products.

AXA already owns a life insurance venture and a mutual fund venture in China.

Separately, KKR and BlackRock recently received Chinese regulatory approvals allowing their newly formed local units to raise funds for investing overseas, official filings showed.

Source: Reuters

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