From recapitalizing rural banks to supporting the stock market, Chuo Huijing, a division of China’s sovereign wealth funds, has supported the country’s financial system since its launch 20 years ago. But over the past year, the scale of the intervention has pushed it into the spotlight.
Chuo Kosuke’s exchange holdings rose seven times the previous year, past RMB1TN ($140 billion) in 2024, as the government ordered stimulus measures aimed at boosting the economy.
Beijing has revealed its desire to build larger financial institutions to help the already state-controlled financial sector navigate economic and market turmoil. Central Hoyzin has both direct company purchases and a vast portfolio, making it a key component of this initiative.
During the escalation of the trade war with the US in April, Chuo Kosuke openly pledged to support the market, explaining for the first time in a statement as a member of the “national team” of prominent national support investors in the country’s market.
George Magnus, a researcher at the China Centre at Oxford University, said:
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“As China adapts to the reality that higher bad debts, stricter credit conditions and weaker asset prices, it is increasingly demanding to intervene in the financial sector and stock markets,” he added.
The central huijin is also an important tool as it forms a vast financial sector where governments remain largely closed from the outside world.
“Huijin is becoming a strategic coordinator,” said the Beijing-based policy advisor. “It’s a handy tool for states to use levers when they need to know what critical financial resources are.”
Since its launch in 2003, the fund has historically acted as a government’s last resort lender in the uncertainty of regional bank rescue. It also holds management or strategic interests of major lenders, such as ICBC and China’s Everbright. It also holds a troubled insurance unit spun from Anban, a Chinese financial conglomerate that went through bankruptcy proceedings after years of suffering in 2024.
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The fund became a wholly owned subsidiary of China Investment Corporation, a Chinese sovereign wealth fund.
Following a drastic reshuffle of leadership and a stimulus move last September, the fund has expanded its portfolio significantly, delving deeper into ETFs and expanding across the financial system.
It is currently led by Zhang Qingsong, 59, a former central banker with 30 years of experience in the Chinese financial system. He also posted senior management posts at lenders such as Agricultural Bank of China and Bank of China, thereby giving deep knowledge of Huijing’s vast portfolio.
In February, the Ministry of Finance transferred control of China’s three biggest bad guys managers, Cinda, Orient and wall walls, to Huijin for free.
Our application shows that as of June 2024, the managed assets are RMB7.76TN (1.1TN) as of June 2024, but according to financial age calculations, there is also a large proportion of the total financial assets of the state’s financial institutions, with a total assets of at least 29TN.
Huijin did not respond to requests for comment.
April was the first time Huijing publicly declared that he was playing in the position of “national team” or “metastable fund” in the language of Chinese market regulators, but he acted similarly in the past to help set up the floor of Chinese stock markets during periods of distress.
Previously, he played the same role as supporting stocks during the 2015 market defeat, investing an estimated RMB1.2TN in over 900 companies to prevent meltdowns. According to Wind Financial Data Service, it has left many holdings since 2021, but in the first quarter of 2025, 165 listed companies still hold shares.
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However, from early 2024, its focus has shifted to tracking key indicators of trading fund holdings, avoiding the problems arising from single-size purchases.
Purchases were tightened in April following Donald Trump’s “liberation day” tariffs. This pledged that Huijin would strengthen its purchase of ETFs “if necessary.” Estimates from Shanghai-based analysts say that they are not allowed to speak publicly about the issue suggests that in April alone, ETF purchases by Huijin could have reached RMB 20 billion.
Huijin’s expanded role this year was aided by a wider coordinated move from other regulators. As China aims to consolidate the financial sector, Huijin will help to promote mergers and promote approval times.
Its activities are also consistent with officially promoting higher dividends in China, but a reduction in mutual fund fees is expected to reduce costs.
A senior executive at Beijing Fundhouse said it would be difficult for managers to maintain rates at higher levels than before, given the “huge” influx from Huijing.
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Many analysts expect intervention funds like Central Hoyzin will eventually withdraw from the market after holding their position for several years, but given the size of this purchase, this could take longer than usual.
And with the mainland A-stock market now weighing more strategically than it was 10 years ago and still a lower rating, the Shanghai-based analyst has proposed that Huijin and the authorities serve “even at ages 20, 30 and 40” positions.
“There is no short-term risk of national teams withdrawing from the market or withdrawing policies,” he said. “It’s not a story at this point.”
