China is set to push its currency deeper into global capital markets with the launch of the country’s first privately managed fund that invests in offshore renminbi assets.
Highland Capital Management, a newly formed company backed by the Yunnan provincial government, is seeking to raise up to Rmb15bn ($2.4bn) in its first fund and will focus on investments in southeast Asia.
Chinese investors are already a significant force in global markets, but their investments are almost always made in dollars or other foreign currencies. With the HCM fund, investments will be denominated in renminbi, a mandate that regulators hope will foster more widespread international use of the Chinese currency.