Standard Chartered becomes first foreign bank in China to custody public QDII, initiated funds

(ECNS) -- Standard Chartered Bank (China) said Thursday it will provide custody services for a Hong Kong stock-initiated fund launched by Guotai Haitong Securities, becoming the first foreign bank to act as custodian for both a public Qualified Domestic Institutional Investor (QDII) fund and an initiated public fund in China.

China has the world's largest and continuously expanding middle-income group, supporting growing demand for wealth management services. Statistics show that the net asset value of China's QDII funds exceeded 1 trillion yuan (about $140 billion) for the first time in January 2026, up more than 50% year-on-year.

Jean Lu, president of Standard Chartered China, said the vast growth potential of China's wealth management market presents broad opportunities for foreign financial institutions including Standard Chartered.

Lu said, as the first foreign bank to obtain a securities investment fund custody license in China, the bank will continue providing high-value-added fund custody services to both domestic and international institutional clients.

(By Gong Weiwei)