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Themis Qi

Around half of Chinese investors with assets over 1 million yuan (US$147,703) plan to increase their investments in Hong Kong and the United States over the next 12 months to diversify their portfolios, despite Beijing’s crackdown on cross-border brokerages, according to a new survey.
The findings come after the DBS Treasures Affluent Investor Survey polled 1,617 individuals in Hong Kong and mainland China with at least HK$1 million (US$127,525) or 1 million yuan in assets in their respective markets, between June and July.
According to the survey, Hong Kong and the US remained the top investment destinations for mainland investors, with 51 per cent and 41 per cent of respondents planning to increase their allocations in the respective markets in the next 12 months.
Mainland China was chosen by 40 per cent of local investors as their preferred investment market.
The survey was conducted after a crackdown in May by mainland regulators seeking to curt illicit outflows. Tiger Brokers, Futu Securities International and Long Bridge were fined for illegal cross-border stock trading. Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission and the Hong Kong Monetary Authority followed with measures to tighten scrutiny on mainland clients.
DBS did not see “any material impact” of the tighter controls on its business, as it fully complied with the regulations, said Amy Kwan Ka-man, head of business planning, customer segment and ecosystem in the Hong Kong unit.
Of affluent mainland investors surveyed, 63 per cent already had a bank account in Hong Kong.

The preference for overseas markets was mainly driven by the demand for diversification amid global market volatility, said Belinda Hsieh Pei-fang, head of treasures investment product and advisory at DBS Hong Kong.
The diversification also aimed at better gains, as investors saw opportunities to buy on the dip in Hong Kong and based on a brighter outlook in the US market, according to Hsieh, who added that mainland investors would go where the best returns are.
Hsieh said the diversification strategy also applied to wealthy clients in other markets, leading to an increase in investments in alternative assets, which range from gold and silver to hedge funds.
Stocks in mainland markets have underperformed this year, with the Shanghai Composite Index down 3.9 per cent year to date as of Wednesday. Investors have been attracted to the semiconductor sector amid the renewed frenzy in artificial intelligence, but those stocks have cooled recently.
Despite the recent retreats, the chip-savvy Korea Composite Stock Price Index has posted gains of 57.7 per cent year to date. In the US, the S&P 500 Index logged a 9.7 per cent gain over the same period.
Hong Kong, despite the Hang Seng Index sliding 5.5 per cent this year due to its low exposure to the memory chip supercycle, offered stocks with lower valuations and diverse products, said DBS’s Hsieh.
However, wealthy investors in mainland China remain cautious about the market outlook, with this year’s expected returns falling to 8.1 per cent from 10.1 per cent a year ago, according to the DBS survey.
Hong Kong investors also lowered their expected gains by 0.5 percentage points to 7.9 per cent for this year.
Amid the economic uncertainties, DBS found that affluent clients in Hong Kong and mainland China prioritised long-term growth, with 66 per cent citing it as their top wealth goal, up from 57 per cent a year ago.


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Stocks in mainland markets have underperformed this year, with the Shanghai Composite Index down 3.9 per cent year to date as of Wednesday


Stocks in mainland markets have underperformed this year, with the Shanghai Composite Index down 3.9 per cent year to date as of Wednesday.


Despite regulatory crackdown, Chinese investors look to Hong Kong, US to diversify

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Stocks in mainland markets have underperformed this year, with the Shanghai Composite Index down 3.9 per cent year to date as of Wednesday

Stocks in mainland markets have underperformed this year, with the Shanghai Composite Index down 3.9 per cent year to date as of Wednesday