Ant Financial Services Group has formed a joint venture (JV) with Vanguard, a US-based asset manager, to introduce streamlined investment advisory services to retail consumers in China.
The combination of Alipay’s technology and Vanguard’s expertise in investment management and advisory services could help the joint venture in providing fund investment advisory services to individual investors in the country.
The joint venture has been approved by the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC).
Vanguard CEO Tim Buckley 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 advisory services will be provided for investment as little as $113
The joint venture is expected to offer customised services to investors based on their investment objectives, time horizon and risk preferences, with as little investments as RMB800 ($113).
The services are accessible through Alipay, an online payment service that serves more than 1.2 billion users around the world and Ant Fortune, a wealth management platform operated by Ant Financial.
Earlier, professional investment advisory services were only offered to a small number of high-net-worth individuals in the country.
The new partnership is expected to showcase each organisation’s particular strengths.
Established in October 2014, Ant Financial is a technology provider that offers inclusive financial services, while Vanguard has deep investment management expertise.
Headquartered in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, Vanguard had $5.9 trillion in global assets under management as of 31 October 2019.
Ant Financial chairman and CEO Eric Jing 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.”
