U.S based investment management company BlackRock Inc. (BLK) will be closing down its private fund unit in Shanghai. The global asset manager says it resolved to close down the unit so as to focus on its mutual fund business in China.
Citing a post from the website of Asset Management Association of China (AMAC), less than a week ago, BlackRock voluntarily cancelled the business registration process of its wholly foreign-owned enterprise (WFOE) unit in Shanghai.
This announcement comes barely 8 months after BlackRock made history becoming the first ever global asset manager to win Chinese regulatory approval to establish a mutual fund unit in China.
Following the approval, BlackRock was given six months to start the business. The firm says it’s still making necessary plan to launch its mutual fund business.
In the beginning of the month, U.S investment advisor Vanguard Group dropped an initial plan to secure a mutual fund license in China. Vanguard said its main reason to quit it’s because of the ‘crowded Chinese market’.
