The China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) has outlined a plan to add ETFs to its Stock Connect scheme.
The move is designed to bolster the link between the securities markets of Hong Kong and Mainland China made via Stock Connect which launched back in November 2014.
An agreement was made between the stock exchanges in Shanghai, Shenzhen and Hong Kong and the China Securities Depository and Clearing Corporation Limited at the end of last year to extend the scheme to include ETFs.
The CSRC’s announcement confirms that the extension will go ahead. No formal launch date has been given for ETF Connect but the relevant parties are working on the completion of the arrangements to launch the scheme.
The news was welcomed by the Hong Kong government. "We have all along strived to expand the scope of mutual access of financial markets in Hong Kong and the Mainland,” said Hong Kong’s financial secretary Paul Chan.
“ETF Connect will further deepen the interaction and integration of the two capital markets, offer more diverse asset allocation choices to Mainland and overseas investors, and promote liquidity as well as sustainable development of ETF markets in the two places.”
© 2022 funds global asia