Shanghai lands among world's top 10 asset management centres

A view of Shanghai's Lujiazui area in July 2021. - IC

SHANGHAI (China Daily/Asia News Network): Shanghai ranked eighth among the top 30 global asset management centres with a grade of 83.7 points, according to the 2021 Global Asset Management Center Evaluation Index, which was released by the Shanghai-based CEIBS Lujiazui Institute of International Finance for the first time on Sept 9.

New York tops the list with 96.7 points, followed closely by London and Boston.

Hong Kong, Singapore, Paris and Los Angeles claimed the fourth to the seventh spots, leading Shanghai by less than two points, The Paper reported on Thursday (Sept 9).

According to Sheng Songcheng, deputy head of the Shanghai-based CEIBS Lujiazui Institute of International Finance, the compilation of the index could track the development trends of the global asset management industry, help understand the gap between Shanghai and mature asset management centers, as well as clarify the direction and path in building Shanghai into a global asset management centre.

A series of international research programmes and exchange activities will also be held based on the index, he said.

The index evaluates global asset management centers via 46 quantitative indicators which are regularly updated, and two qualitative indicators.

In terms of the weighted factors in its design, the index highlights the importance of the core indicator -- assets under management, the report said.

Among the eight segments, capital supply, business foundation, as well as ESG (environmental, social and governance) business and alternative assets are all given a weight of 10 per cent.

Talent reserve and underlying assets each receive a weight of 20 per cent, while both the asset management institutions and open-ended funds have a weight of 30 per cent.

The index also highlights the role of exchanges as infrastructure in asset management, reflecting how capital markets could offer more advantages over the banking system.

According to the report, Shanghai, the financial hub of China, can offer greater capital and underlying assets than Paris.

The city should make further efforts in improving its business foundation, talent reserve, and asset management institutions, according to the report.