On 31 July 2020, the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) issued consultation papers on Measures for the Supervision and Administration of Public-offered Securities Investment Fund Managers (the Measures, available here in Chinese)and the Provisions on Issues concerning the Implementation of the Measures for the Supervision and Administration of Public-offered Securities Investment Fund Managers (the Implementation Provisions, available here in Chinese).

The Measures and Implementation Provisions aim to revise and improve the old measures for fund management companies issued in 2012. The key amendments include: improving the approval process for fund management companies, strengthening on-going supervision, optimising the public fund management licence mechanism, and enhancing the governance structure of fund management companies.

Since the removal of shareholding limits for fund management companies in mainland China on 1 April 2020, eligible foreign financial institutions may establish public-offered fund management companies as wholly foreign owned enterprises (WFOE FMCs). In this regard, foreign financial institutions who wish to establish WFOE FMCs need to closely follow the relevant requirements, especially the eligibility requirements for shareholders of WFOE FMCs, the requirements for actual controllers of WFOE FMCs, and the reporting obligations of foreign shareholders of WFOE FMCs. It is also worth noting that the Measures and Implementation Provisions have set out the requirements for private fund managers to apply for public-offered fund management licences.

The public consultation on the Measures and Implementation Provisions will end on 30 August 2020. We will monitor progress and share developments in the future.