China

Ant Financial and Vanguard Announce Partnership to Bring Inclusive Wealth Management Services to More Consumers in China

Vanguard and Ant Financial Services Group, operator of the world’s leading payment and lifestyle platform, Alipay, announced a partnership to bring a new streamlined and broadly-available investment advisory service to retail consumers in China.

Combining Alipay’s technology and Vanguard’s expertise in investment management and advisory services, the two companies’ joint venture will provide a fund investment advisory service, as approved by the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC), to Chinese individual investors.

Tim Buckley, CEO, Vanguard, said “Since opening our Shanghai office in 2017, we have been dedicated to bringing Vanguard’s way of investing to Chinese investors. This venture marries Vanguard’s time-tested investment philosophy and approach with Ant’s digital platform and technology to fundamentally change for the better how individuals in China invest.”

The joint venture will provide customised services for investors based on their investment objectives, time horizon, and risk preferences, with minimum investments of RMB800 and accessible through Alipay and Ant Fortune, a comprehensive wealth management platform operated by Ant Financial. Previously, professional investment advisory services were only accessible to a small number of high-net-worth individuals in China.

Eric Jing, Chairman and CEO, Ant Financial, said “Alipay is committed to making finance more inclusive for individuals and small and micro businesses through technology, and we’re partnering with financial institutions around the world to achieve this by building an open and technology-driven ecosystem. Combining our technology with Vanguard’s investment advisory expertise will make high-quality wealth management services simpler, smarter and more inclusive.”

The new partnership brings together two industry leaders and showcases each organisation’s particular strengths. Ant Financial, which is dedicated to using technology to bring inclusive financial services to the world, and Vanguard, with its significant experience serving investors and deep investment management expertise.

Peter Zhang, CEO of the joint venture, said “Today, millions of Chinese investors lack access to professional investment advisory services. Through this partnership, we will reduce complexity and significantly lower the threshold for individual investors to access high-quality wealth management advice in China. We are delighted to bring this important service to more people in China and look forward to supporting the sustainable growth of the wealth management industry.”