China's Ant Financial, Vanguard announce China advisory venture

[December 14, 2019]    SHANGHAI (Reuters) - Chinese fintech company Ant Financial Services [ANTFIN.UL] and U.S. asset management firm The Vanguard Group have established a joint venture to provide retail investment advisory services in China, the companies said in a statement on Saturday.

The logo of Ant Financial Services Group, Alibaba's financial affiliate, is pictured at its headquarters in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, China January 24, 2018. REUTERS/Shu Zhang

The announcement, which comes more than six months after the joint venture appeared in an online national registry, said the company would provide customized services for investors based on individual risk preferences, time horizons and investment objectives.

The service will accept minimum investments of 800 yuan ($113.65) and will be accessible through Ant Financial's Alipay app, the statement said.

Vanguard, which has more than $5 trillion in assets under management, launched a wholly foreign-owned enterprise (WFOE) in China in May 2017.

Ant Financial, an affiliate of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd <BABA.N><9988.HK>, currently operates Yu'ebao - the world's largest money market fund.

The company, launched as a third-party payment provider, held 1.13 trillion yuan in net assets as of the end of 2018.

(Reporting by Andrew Galbraith; Editing by Michael Perry)

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