Deutsche Bank gets China's approval to launch domestic custody services for securities investment funds

Deutsche Bank (China) Co Ltd announced on Wednesday it has received regulatory approval to launch its domestic custody services for securities investment funds established in China, thus becoming the first EU bank to offer such services in the country.

"We are launching the securities investment fund custody business at a most opportune time when international investors are more actively setting up onshore presence in China," said Rose Zhu, Deutsche Bank China chief country officer.

"The inclusion of Chinese government bonds in major global indices is also a great testimony to the confidence of global investors in China's sustained growth prospect and continuous opening up of the capital market, which will attract further foreign capital inflows," Zhu said.

China's fund industry has been evolving rapidly and progressively becoming more sophisticated. The custody service market for China's public securities investment funds alone has reached more than 20 trillion yuan ($3.14 trillion) in scale. At the same time, China's interbank direct investment channels and the Bond Connect scheme further developed under the new Qualified Foreign Institutional Investor and Renminbi Qualified Foreign Institutional Investor schemes. Deutsche Bank said. They have boosted international demand for Chinese assets.

As China's domestic financial market becomes increasingly integrated with the global financial market, Deutsche Bank Research forecasts cumulative offshore inflows to reach 4 trillion yuan between 2021 and 2025.

Anand Rengarajan, global head of sales and head of securities services in the Asia-Pacific region at Deutsche Bank, said: "Being one of the few foreign banks to provide domestic custody in one of the world's most important and fastest growing markets is a significant step for us as a leading global custody service provider. We will continue to leverage our local market expertise in China to provide our clients with more flexible and customized custody solutions."

jiangxueqing@chinadaily.com.cn