Updated with correction
Money management behemoth Vanguard Group, Malvern, Penn., is teaming up with payments giant Ant Financial to tap into China’s retail market, the companies said Friday.
Hangzhou-based Ant Financial is the operator of online payment service Alipay — technology that, once combined with Vanguard’s expertise, will provide fund investment advisory services to Chinese retail investors, a joint news release from the companies said.
The joint venture will provide customized services to individuals based on their investment objectives, time horizon and risk preferences, requiring a minimum investment of 800 renminbi ($113).
The partnership will help expand access to professional investment advice to more than just a small number of high-net-worth investors in China, according to the news release.
“Since opening our Shanghai office in 2017, we have been dedicated to bringing Vanguard’s way of investing to Chinese investors,” Vanguard CEO Tim Buckley said in the news release. “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.”
Alipay, which was founded in 2004 by Alibaba Group, currently serves more than 1.2 billion users globally with services that span from online payments, insurance, lending, credit scores and asset management to cab hailing and medical appointment scheduling.
Of note, users can purchase money market funds on Yu’e Bao, the spare cash management platform within the Alipay app, along with other wealth management products, the news release said.
“Today, millions of Chinese investors lack access to professional investment advisory services,” Peter Zhang, CEO of Vanguard and Ant Financial’s joint venture, said in the news release. “Through this partnership, we will reduce complexity and significantly lower the threshold for individual investors to access high-quality wealth management advice in China.”
Vanguard managed $5.9 trillion in assets as of Oct. 31.
