In China, the retirement age for civil servants and white-collar workers is 55 for women and 60 for men. Credit: Matthew Bennett on Unsplash.

The banking and insurance regulator of China is set to launch a wealth management product pilot in four cities, targeting retail investors looking to boost their pension savings.

Pilots will be rolled out in the central city of Wuhan, eastern coastal city Qingdao, western city Chengdu, and southern city Shenzhen, reported Reuters.

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The wealth management unit of Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, China Construction Bank, China Merchants Bank and China Everbright Bank will distribute the products starting from 15 September.

The bank involved can raise up CNY10 bn ($1.6 bn) of products which will remain in place for a year.

The move is part of China’s strategy to transform its $1.2 trillion pension system for a rapidly aging population.

Last month, Chinese regulators established a state pension company with registered capital of CNY 11.2bn.

This newly established company, which is expected to help boost funds for retirees, is owned by 17 bank-affiliated wealth management units, insurers, and state institutions.

In China, the retirement age for civil servants and white-collar workers is 55 for women and 60 for men.

Other developments

Earlier this month, reports said that a hedge fund unit of UBS Group is mulling to offer its clients direct access to its China strategy, which registered double-digit growth this year.

At present, UBS clients can access the China strategy only through a $3.2bn multi-strategy investment pool provided by UBS O’Connor, the company’s New York-based hedge fund unit.

Last month, The Telegraph reported that the UK-based life insurer and asset manager Legal & General Group is planning to expand its operations to China.

Recently, BlackRock has reportedly raised about $1bn (CNY6.8bn) from more than 111,000 investors for the launch of its maiden mutual fund in China.

Launched at the end of August 2021, the BlackRock China New Horizon Mixed Securities Investment Fund ceased accepting new subscription a week prior to its planned closing date.