HNA Group has a diverse portfolio of investments in a wide range of industries spanning from hotels to electronics and airlines; the Chinese-based company has now reported significant investment in the financial services industry with recent deals focused on the SkyBridge hedge fund platform, New Zealand lender UDC Finance and a 3% stake in Deutsche Bank; the investments from HNA follow encouragement by Beijing in global investments; they also reflect China's growing middle class and the expected demand for broadened investment options among Chinese consumers. Source
Chinese conglomerate HNA has reported it will buy a 25% stake in Old Mutual's US asset management unit; HNA will pay approximately $445 million; following the sale, Old Mutual will own 26% of the US asset management business, a decrease from 51%; Old Mutual is expected to also sell the remaining portion of the company with a number of offers from strategic buyers and private equity groups; HNA has been increasingly adding financial services companies to its portfolio with recent acquisitions including Deutsche Bank and Anthony Scaramucci's SkyBridge Capital. Source
MaiziJinfu, a Chinese Internet-based financial services provider, has raised funds in a Series B funding round; Huang Darong, CEO and chairman of MaiziJinfu, said, "The new fund will be used to incubate upgraded internet finance products as well as to further the company's talent development."; the announcement was made at the Internet Finance Development and Innovative Application Forum in Shanghai; MaiziJinfu has served over two million clients from diverse industries, with approximately 20 billion RMB of funding; it is also the parent company of UniFi which offers a financing product for international students in the US and Canada, supporting them with funding for various purposes that is difficult to obtain because they lack standard Social Security records. Source
Noah Holdings Limited, a wealth and asset management services provider in China, has announced its fourth quarter and full year results for 2016; the firm has two leading services including asset management and internet finance; net revenues for the full year 2016 were RMB 2,513.6 million (US $362.0 million), an 18.6% increase from 2015; for the year the firm reported an operating margin of 26.5%, compared to 26.4% for 2015; the firm's internet finance business is led by Mr. Kenny Lam, who reported that the company was pleased with the results, also stating that, "Our newer businesses – asset management and internet finance – are bringing impactful results to the group." Source
It is estimated that half of China’s peer to peer lending platforms closed down in 2018; by the end of...
China's State Administrative of Foreign Exchange (SAFE) has granted Qualified Domestic Institutional Investor (QDII) quotas of US$89.9 billion to 132 Chinese mainland financial institutions; the new quotas follow positive investment catalysts including a Hong Kong stock market rally; the new quotas give Chinese asset managers broader freedom for investment in foreign fixed income and equities. Source
The debut of new mobile wallets ahead of the Winter Olympics in Beijing is an impetus for the Federal Reserve to bring its own central bank digital currency project up to speed.
China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) is now consulting some blockchain companies on ICOs, China Business News exclusively reports; now it is in the phase of collecting suggestions and having discussions; CSRC will particularly keep tabs on the fraud projects that raise money in the guise of cryptocurrencies and ICOs. Source (Chinese)
Tencent has reported plans in a white paper for the development of a blockchain platform; the firm says it plans to use the platform for offering digital asset management, authentication and shared economies, among other services; the firm also says the platform will help it to collaborate with other firms; in its white paper, Tencent also advocates for blockchain development and government integration in China. Source
Miners explain how China's underground crypto mining operation works.