Chinese asset manager CSOP Asset Management has launched the first exchange-traded fund in Hong Kong to track China’s Star Market. The Shanghai-based science and technology board has been drawing significant interest in the mainland since its establishment 18 months ago.
CSOP Asset Management launches ETF to Track China’s Star Market
The launch of CSOP Asset Management comes as other Chinese managers Bosera Asset Management and E Fund Management (HK) prepare to list their Star market ETFs in Hong Kong. The CSOP star 50 Index ETF launched on February 10 in Hong Kong, and it tracks the 50 largest securities on the Chinese exchange featuring emerging innovation and tech enterprises in the country.
In July 2019, China’s Nasdaq-style StarBoard launched with a lot of fanfare featuring innovative firms in biomedical sciences, IT, environmental protection, and energy. It is now a major listing board for most upcoming Chinese startups or unicorns with almost $1 billion in valuation. The board debuted with only 25 firms, but the list has grown to around 220 firms with an estimated market capitalization of almost $155 billion.
Interestingly, foreign investors have limited access to the Star Market, with only a handful of Star market-listed equities being added to the Shanghai-Hong Kong Stock Connect program. The launch of ETFs tracking the markets has opened access and tapped to massive demand, thus allowing investors to invest few thousands instead of half a million if they wanted to direct one and account and invest in listed companies.
Canada approves the first Bitcoin ETF
In North America, the first Bitcoin ETF received the green light from Canadian securities regulators. Purpose Investment Inc. indicated that it had received approval from regulators to launch Purpose Bitcoin ETF, making it the first to receive regulatory approval in the North American market. The BTC ETF has been designed to offer investors exposure to the largest crypto in the world, through direct investment in physically settled BTC.
Although this is expected to be the first BTC investment vehicle that has been labeled an ETF, there are several physically-backed BTC exchange-traded products in Europe functioning the same way as an ETF. Canada has been staying ahead of the US in approving ETFs, having launched the first marijuana-related ETFs before their southern neighbors. According to industry experts, this is good news for companies planning to offer their ETFs on US exchanges.
Eric Balchunas, Bloomberg Intelligence ETF analyst, said that Canada has a history of approving new ETF types before the US. He added that the US also has a history of following, and therefore this is great news for BTC hopes in the US. Currently, BTC trusts in the US trade at huge premiums, and still, investors flock in since buying investment trusts is easier than buying coins.
RBC announces February cash distribution
RBC Global Asset Management Inc. has announced its February 2021 cash distributions for RBC ETFs unitholders. The cash distribution will be payable to unitholders, who will be on record as of February 19, 2021.
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