The decision is part of the U.S. financial giant’s push to focus on dispensing advice in China with Ant Group
American financial giant Vanguard Group has suspended plans to launch a mutual-fund business in China.
The Malvern, Pa., firm told staffers in recent days that it was pausing months of preparations to sell its funds to Chinese consumers. The firm had been planning to seek Beijing’s approval for the business.
The $7.2 trillion asset manager has for years aimed to bring low-cost index funds to China, a radical idea in a country where investors prize funds that pick and choose investments to beat markets. But Vanguard executives have now decided that building a meaningful presence in China’s fund industry would take longer than they expected, people familiar with the matter said.
The shift will result in a small number of jobs being eliminated.
Vanguard’s decision stands in contrast to other Wall Street firms, which are continuing a push to get Beijing’s approval to sell their own funds to Chinese consumers. Vanguard is betting that it can reach Chinese individuals another way.