Bangkok-based Kasikorn Asset Management says it has become the first Thai firm to gain a quota to invest in mainland China under the renminbi qualified foreign institutional investor (RQFII) scheme.
The scheme, which allows qualifying investors to buy mainland assets using offshore renminbi, was extended to Thailand in December 2015 when a 50 billion renminbi quota was awarded to the country.
The licence "will enable us to invest directly in Chinese stock markets, as well as bonds issued by Chinese financial institutions, which will increase our investment frontier, allowing us to select bonds that offer more attractive yields," says Vasin Vanichvoranun, executive chairman of Kasikorn Asset Management.
The company has so far invested in Chinese assets by buying exchange-traded funds (ETFs) or by purchasing assets in Hong Kong and Macau.
"We are delighted to be working with Kasikorn Asset Management as the first renminbi qualified institutional investor in Thailand," says Ian Banks, head of securities services, Asia Pacific for HSBC, which is providing custody.
©2016 funds global asia