China's private fund AUM hits record for 11th straight month, while manager count shrinks

Amid a climate of stringent regulation and market stabilization, the scale of China's private fund industry has hit a historic high.

Industry Scale Continues to Break Records

On the evening of September 23, the Asset Management Association of China (AMAC) released its monthly statistical report on private funds. According to the report, as of the end of August, there were 145,219 private funds in existence, with a total scale of 25.75 trillion yuan. Since October 2025, the industry's scale has set new historical records for 11 consecutive months.

Number of Fund Managers Continues to Decline

In contrast to the steadily rising asset management scale, the number of private fund managers has continued to shrink. As of the end of August, there were 18,452 registered private fund managers, a decrease of 60 from the end of July and a reduction of 779 from the beginning of the year.

Industry insiders view the contrasting trends—rising asset scale versus declining manager count—as a reflection of the accelerated "survival of the fittest" and ongoing optimization of the industry ecosystem in recent years.

Securities Private Funds Lead Growth

AMAC data shows that as of the end of August:

• Total funds in existence: 145,219, with a total scale of 25.75 trillion yuan
• Private securities investment funds: 84,130 (approx. 58% of total funds), with a scale of 9.08 trillion yuan (approx. 35% of total scale)
• Private equity investment funds: 29,608, with a scale of 11.93 trillion yuan
• Venture capital funds: 30,840, with a scale of 4.47 trillion yuan

The report also shows that in August, 1,890 new private fund products were filed, with a filing scale of 72.402 billion yuan. Among them:

• Private securities investment funds: 1,205 new products, filing scale of 35.061 billion yuan (approx. 64% of new products, nearly 50% of new scale)
• Equity and venture capital funds combined: approx. 37.3 billion yuan in new filings

Reasons Behind the Record Growth

Industry experts attribute the continuous record-breaking scale to two main factors:

1. Declining returns on deposits and fixed-income assets have accelerated the shift of household and institutional capital toward equity and hedge-type assets.
2. Strong equity financing demand from tech companies amid the AI wave, coupled with smoother exit channels, has driven steady expansion in private equity fund scale.

Over 700 Fund Managers Removed Year-to-Date

While the scale continues to climb, the number of private fund managers continues to contract.

As of the end of August, there were 18,452 registered private fund managers, down 60 from July and 779 from the 19,231 at the start of the year.

Additionally, as of September 23, 889 private fund managers had been deregistered this year, including:

• 405 voluntarily deregistered
• 391 deregistered by the association
• 2 deregistered by public notice
• 91 deregistered due to having no funds under management for 12 months

Meanwhile, the number of newly established fund managers meeting registration thresholds is also declining. According to third-party statistics, only about 65 new private fund managers have been registered this year, a record low in recent years.

With fewer new entrants and ongoing "cleansing" of existing institutions, the trend toward high-quality development in the private fund industry is becoming increasingly evident.

Veteran Investment Managers Continue to Emerge

This year, several seasoned asset management veterans have chosen to start their own private fund firms or join strong platforms, bringing fresh momentum to the industry.

Industry observers note that these experienced, well-capitalized investment managers are entering the market at a time when private fund regulations are being continuously refined, which is expected to reshape the industry landscape.

According to AMAC disclosures:

• Lingren Investment, the secondary market private fund platform under Hillhouse Capital, welcomed prominent value investment manager Bao Wuke in May. Bao serves not only as a core fund manager but also as Managing Director, a senior executive role.
• Another value investing veteran, Cao Mingchang, completed the establishment of his private fund firm Puqiao Asset in March 2026. The firm has largely assembled its founding team, with Cao serving as Chief Investment Officer.
• Ye Zhichen, a partner at a leading private fund institution, recently founded Fengye Private Fund, which completed registration on September 11.
• Li Jianfei, former senior partner and fund manager at Guoyuan Xinda, has also completed registration for his newly established firm Buzheng Private Fund.

Industry insiders believe that the increasingly healthy ecosystem of the private fund industry is a key factor attracting these seasoned professionals to make their mark.