A roundtable conference for institutional investors from China and abroad, sponsored by Lujiazui Financial City Development Bureau and the UK's Hedge Fund Standard Board, takes place in Lujiazui, Shanghai's financial hub, on Nov 23. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

A roundtable conference for institutional investors from China and abroad took place in Lujiazui, Shanghai's financial hub, on Nov 23.

Many leaders of top Chinese and foreign asset management institutions attended the event and discussed investment-related topics. Misha Graboi, co-founder and general manager of Pacific Alternative Asset Management Co (PAAMCO), paid attention to small fund firms and suggested that the firms should broaden their search for investment opportunities and fields.

The event was a result of a joint effort by Lujiazui Financial City Development Bureau and the UK's Hedge Fund Standard Board (HFSB), serving as a platform for Chinese and overseas asset management institutions to exchange ideas and for Lujiazui Financial City to improve its global influence and competitiveness.

The HFSB, established in 2007 in London, is a standard-setting organization for the hedge fund industry. It now has nearly 200 hedge fund managers and institutional investors as members, who between them manage or invest $3 trillion.

Lujiazui's cooperation with HFSB helps align local fund firms and asset management institutions with international rules.

Lujiazui is currently home to 1,500 registered private fund firms, accounting for 40 percent of Shanghai's total.

It has also become a hub for world-leading asset management institutions, including Europe's largest listed fund manager Aberdeen Asset Management. There are also some 20 other institutions from countries such as the US, France and Japan that have already moved to Lujiazui or intend to do so.

In addition to the HFSB, Lujiazui has launched a variety of forums with the help of other international organizations, including the International Capital Market Association and Alternative Investment Management Association, to boost its asset management sector.

Ren Kaifeng, an official from the Lujiazui Financial City Development Bureau, said that local authorities plan to integrate the area's financial resources to lure more top Chinese and foreign asset management institutions and to advance the internationalization of the area's asset management sector.