China-focused hedge funds lower exposure as risks mount

By Summer season Zhen

HONG KONG (Reuters) – A few of Asia’s giant China-focused hedge funds are shopping for extra non-China shares as regulatory scrutiny, coverage uncertainties and a slowing mainland financial system pressure them to chop publicity to offshore Chinese language property.

Beijing’s clampdown on expertise firms, an actual property debt disaster, Sino-U.S. audit tensions and disruptions from zero-COVID insurance policies, have hit sentiment, portfolio managers stated, including it was troublesome to see how firms would develop.

“The previous yr has been extraordinarily troublesome for funds which are primarily based in Hong Kong and specializing in investing in offshore China shares,” stated a Hong Kong-based hedge fund portfolio supervisor, who declined to be recognized as a result of sensitivity of the topic.

“Many have needed to minimize publicity to China shares and allocate some positions to the U.S. or Southeast Asia.”

Hedge funds are aggressive customers of leverage and derivatives to generate yields. China-focused funds have historically stored a big portion of portfolios in American Depository Receipts (ADRs) of mainland companies.

HHLR Advisers, an funding administration agency below non-public fairness agency Hillhouse Capital Group, had three non-China firms in its prime 5 U.S.-listed holdings within the second quarter in contrast with only one within the second quarter of 2021, 13F filings to the U.S. Securities and Change Fee present.

HHLR is without doubt one of the largest offshore China managers and identified for its heavy positions in U.S.-listed Chinese language shares. Its three prime non-China holdings are buyer relationship administration platform supplier Salesforce, meals supply agency DoorDash and gaming and e-commerce firm Sea. Its prime holding, comprising 19% of its portfolio in U.S.-listed shares, is Chinese language drug developer BeiGene

Hong Kong-based Aspex Administration which manages greater than $7 billion and focuses on pan-Asian fairness, backed by Hillhouse Founder Zhang Lei, has additionally switched holdings. 4 out of 5 of Aspex’s prime buys amongst U.S.-listed companies within the second quarter had been non-China names, together with DoorDash, semiconductor tools provider Lam Analysis, NVidia and Las Vegas Sands.

Its non-China publicity now accounts for about 31% of its prime 10 U.S.-listed holdings, a big improve from about 15% within the first quarter of 2022, or 14% in the identical interval final yr, primarily based on Reuters calculations based on 13F filings.

The China ADR index is down greater than 60% from a peak on Feb. 16 2021, excess of Nasdaq’s 17% drop for a similar interval.

ECONOMIC, REGULATORY RISKS

Hong Kong-based Tairen Capital,a hedge fund which invests globally with a China focus, reported 4 out of 5 prime buys within the second quarter had been non-China names, whereas eight out its prime 10 U.S.-listed holdings had been non-Chinese language firms, based on 13F filings.

Tairen was as soon as amongst prime buyers in China’s e-commerce platform Pinduoduo. Within the second quarter of 2021, the agency’s largest U.S. inventory itemizing place was Pinduoduo with a market worth of over $200 million, however as they shed that inventory over the following two quarters, the fund’s largest place in the latest quarter was Microsoft.

Many China-focused funds have been hiring analysts with expertise in U.S. markets.

In a letter to buyers in April, reviewed by Reuters, Hong Kong-based Anatole Funding CIO George Yang stated the agency would deploy extra capital to the USA, the place they’ll discover “alternatives with lengthy length and subsequently nice beta”. That got here after the fund posted the worst quarterly consequence since they launched in 2016 within the first quarter.

The pattern of accelerating publicity to non-China shares is unlikely to be a short-term pattern to hedge China threat, stated a Hong Kong-based fairness gross sales director targeted on the expertise, media and telecom sector.

Nevertheless, some buyers doubt this can be a sustainable option to hedge dangers notably for funds that had posted disappointing returns of their house market.

Damien Tan, managing director at Cambridge Associates believes the non-China publicity is not going to symbolize a significant a part of the portfolio, particularly for China-focused managers, as these managers have to “exhibit how they’ve a aggressive edge to underwrite and analysis these non-China names”.

Pierre Hoebrechts, CIO at Hong Kong-based Arowana Asset Administration who has been investing in China for 12 years, stated most China funds had confronted challenges selecting shares of their market of experience prior to now 18 months, and therefore there have been truthful doubts about their capability to navigate a market the place they’ve little long-term expertise.

He additionally pointed to the substantial distinction in valuations between China and the USA in lots of sectors, following the very giant correction the Chinese language market has suffered.

“Buyers would possibly surprise to which extent that market would possibly even have many extra alternatives than the U.S. at this stage.”

(Enhancing by Jacqueline Wong)