Central Huijin, the state-owned investment arm of China’s sovereign wealth fund, has emerged as a dominant force in the country’s financial markets, following an unprecedented surge in interventions aimed at supporting the domestic economy and stabilizing investor sentiment. As reported by the Financial Times, Huijin’s strategic role within China’s “national team” of market-stabilizing institutions has expanded significantly amid deepening economic headwinds and escalating tensions with the United States.
The fund’s holdings in exchange traded funds (ETFs) soared past Rmb1tn ($140bn) in 2024 — a staggering seven-fold increase year over year — as Beijing directed sweeping stimulus efforts through key financial actors. Huijin, founded in 2003 and now managing Rmb7.76tn ($1.1tn) in assets, has become central to these state-led measures, embodying a wider push to consolidate and fortify China’s financial architecture.
In a rare public statement during the height of the U.S.-China trade confrontation in April, Huijin formally identified itself as part of the “national team” — a title typically reserved for top-tier state investors called upon during times of market distress. The move marked a notable shift in the fund’s historically discreet approach.
“Central Huijin is obviously being asked to play a big role,” George Magnus, a research associate at Oxford University’s China Centre, told the Financial Times. “It will be called upon more and more to intervene in the financial sector and the stock market as China adapts to the reality of higher non-performing loans, tighter credit conditions, and weaker asset prices.”
Huijin’s origins trace back to its role as a financial firefighter — quietly rescuing troubled regional banks and holding strategic stakes in major lenders including ICBC and China Everbright. But its current mandate is far broader. It now serves as both a market stabilizer and an orchestrator of financial sector reform. In February, the Ministry of Finance transferred to Huijin its stakes in China’s three biggest bad-debt managers — Cinda, Orient, and Great Wall — effectively giving the fund vast influence over distressed assets.
In total, Huijin holds stakes in institutions that collectively manage more than $29tn in assets, according to Financial Times estimates — representing a significant slice of China’s entire financial system. Its operations are supported by coordination from other key regulators, particularly the People’s Bank of China, and play into broader goals of streamlining mergers, accelerating regulatory approvals, and reducing systemic risk.
Huijin’s ETF buying has gained momentum since Donald Trump’s reimposed tariffs — dubbed “liberation day” duties — rattled Chinese markets in April. Analysts believe the fund may have injected as much as Rmb200bn into ETFs that month alone, avoiding the volatility often tied to direct single-stock purchases. Its strategy also aligns with a government push for increased dividend payouts and lower mutual fund fees, placing pressure on private fund managers to adapt to the new state-driven market dynamics.
Under the leadership of Zhang Qingsong, a seasoned former central banker with decades of experience at institutions like the Agricultural Bank of China and Bank of China, Huijin is poised to remain at the forefront of financial stabilization efforts. Zhang’s close familiarity with the intricacies of China’s banking sector makes him a powerful figure as the government seeks to tighten control over vital financial resources.
While Huijin’s role is reminiscent of its high-profile interventions during the 2015 stock market rout — when it poured more than Rmb1.2tn into over 900 companies — this time the stakes and scope are far larger. The current approach is longer-term and more strategic. As of Q1 2025, Huijin still held stakes in 165 listed firms, and its ETF strategy is expected to continue as a core tool of intervention.
Despite speculation that Huijin might gradually exit once market stability returns, a Shanghai-based strategist told the Financial Times that the fund’s horizon could be much longer: “20, 30, even 40 years. I don’t see any near-term risk of the national team exiting the market or policy turning negative.”
With the mainland’s A-share markets now seen as critical to China’s economic future — both financially and politically — Central Huijin’s elevated position marks a new era of state-led market management. And as global tensions continue to weigh on capital flows and investor confidence, Beijing’s reliance on its $1.1tn market stabilizer shows no signs of slowing.
