Even amid geopolitical uncertainties, investor appetite for China exposure has been rising, according to Asset Servicing Insights 2025, an annual survey conducted by Asset Benchmark Research ( ABR ).

This year’s survey gathered responses from nearly 200 participants, primarily asset managers, alongside asset owners, private banks, and wealth managers.

About 60% of respondents are currently investing in China. Interest in the Qualified Foreign Investor ( QFI ) scheme has grown slightly, with 51% of respondents using this channel – up from 43% last year.

This upward trend has persisted over the past four years, reflecting rising demand for QFI to access Chinese assets. Notably, quantitative funds have emerged as active users of QFI in the past two years, while enterprises with idle cash have also opened QFI accounts. 

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Source:ABR

More than 70 new QFI accounts were opened in 2024, with Chinese service providers like Bank of China and China Construction Bank servicing over half of them.

Many enterprise QFI clients seek exposure to commodities and futures, where licensing can be challenging for foreign players. Additionally, assets under custody for these clients tend to be smaller initially. 

Some enterprise clients have praised Chinese service providers for guiding them through the application process, noting that the banks offered high-quality service despite smaller asset sizes. Banks, in turn, expect these clients’ assets to grow as infrastructure develops. 

The share of respondents accessing China via the Bond Connect scheme fell from 28% to 19%, partly because existing QFI access meets their needs ( 71% ). Asset servicing providers report that while some clients still open new Bond Connect accounts, investment activity remains subdued. 

In terms of asset classes when investing in China, private assets are seeing a significant increase. Respondents investing in private equity rose from 5% to 12%, while those in private debt increased from 7% to 10%. 

About 40% of respondents are currently not investing in China, but the proportion of those with no plans to invest in China has decreased from 75% last year to 64% this year.

Those who have established wholly foreign-owned enterprise ( WFOE ) structures in China remain stable, but the number of those setting up new WFOEs has risen significantly – from 1-2% in 2024 to 10% this year. Meanwhile, 7% of respondents plan to maintain joint venture structures.  These numbers indicate a potential growing interest in China as well.