Active equity funds usher in a "warm spring" with several funds raising over 2 billion yuan in their initial offerings

Ask AI · What market consensus lies behind the rebound in fund issuance in 2026?

Since 2026, the public fund issuance market has shown signs of warming. According to Wind data, as of March 17, the new issuance scale of public funds (consolidated) this year is approximately 249.6 billion yuan, the highest in nearly four years for the same period. Among them, equity products performed notably, with an issuance scale exceeding 91 billion yuan.

After the Spring Festival, the effective subscription numbers for some newly issued equity products are quite impressive. Among them, Yongying Ruijian Growth set a record with 230,400 subscriptions since November 2021. In terms of initial subscription scale, since January, 16 active equity funds have each had a combined issuance scale exceeding 2 billion yuan, with GF Research Intelligent Selection managed by Yang Dong leading with 7.221 billion yuan.

Another feature of this round of new products is that many fund companies dispatched core equity research and investment professionals to lead. Interviews with fund managers reveal several common views on the market in 2026: macro environment is becoming more favorable, technology growth remains the main theme but internal structural disagreements exist, and resource commodities’ defensive value is highlighted. Despite differing short-term pace opinions, most fund managers believe there are abundant structural opportunities.

From the capital flow perspective, this round of new issuances has two characteristics: first, funds are concentrated among top fund managers, with some products attracting over 100,000 subscriptions; second, a “growth” style continues to be the focus of capital chasing.

After the Spring Festival, a bright spot for newly issued active equity funds is that some funds’ subscription numbers have refreshed records in nearly four years.

Managed by Li Wenbin, Yongying Ruijian Growth was subscribed to for 9 days, with a total effective subscription of 230,400 accounts. According to Wind data comparison by 21st Century Business Herald, this set a new record for the highest subscription count for newly issued active equity funds since November 2021.

Second place is GF Growth Selection managed by Chen Yunzhong. The fund’s 14-day subscription resulted in 149,200 effective subscriptions. Following are Industrial Bank’s Prosperity Selection managed by Gao Sheng, E Fund’s Research Intelligent Selection managed by Bao Zhengyu, and Huashang Core Choice managed by Wang Yiwen, with effective subscriptions of 27,100, 13,500, and 11,400 respectively. Six active equity funds have effective subscriptions exceeding 10,000.

In terms of initial subscription scale, from January to March 17, 16 active equity funds each had a combined issuance scale over 2 billion yuan.

Among them, GF Research Intelligent Selection managed by Yang Dong, with an initial scale of 7.221 billion yuan, ranks first in active equity issuance this year. Next are Li Wenbin’s Yongying Ruijian Growth, Huabao Advantage Industry managed by Zheng Yingliang, and Yin Hua Zhixiang managed by Fang Jian, each with issuance scales over 5 billion yuan.

Morgan Stanley Fund’s Lei Zhiyong, who won the active equity fund championship in 2024, also saw his newly established Morgan Hushang Deep Tech fund’s initial scale exceed 4.4 billion yuan at the beginning of this year.

Among the top 20 funds by issuance scale, GF Fund and Invesco Great Wall Fund each have three funds on the list; Yongying Fund has two.

In terms of fundraising efficiency, some products had relatively short subscription periods. For example, Yang Meng’s Bodao Star Voyage took only 7 days to raise over 2.7 billion yuan; Yongying Ruijian Growth’s subscription period was 9 days; GF Research Intelligent Selection took 10 days. This indicates high investor attention to certain fund managers and their products.

It is noteworthy that the fundraising situation of products issued simultaneously shows differentiation: some top products have initial scales over 5 billion yuan, while several funds’ first subscriptions are less than 100 million yuan, with some having fewer than 500 effective subscriptions. This reflects current market funds’ preference for managers with a proven track record and clear investment frameworks.

Another prominent feature of this round of new equity products is that many fund companies dispatched their core equity research and investment teams to lead, such as Yang Dong, Li Wenbin, Liu Lili, Gang Dengfeng, Chen Yunzhong, Lei Zhiyong, etc.

Li Wenbin, currently Co-CEO of the Equity Investment Department at Yongying Fund, joined Yongying in 2024. Besides managing the record-breaking Yongying Ruijian Growth, he has managed his first fund at Yongying, Yongying Technology Driven A, which has returned over 168% since September 2024 (data from Wind, as of March 17). Li Wenbin believes that despite some divergence within the tech sector, segments with core technological barriers and real performance implementation will enter a golden development period during the “14th Five-Year Plan.”

Lili Liu of Fuguo Fund emphasizes a deep value investment framework, pursuing diversification of sources of returns and avoiding overly concentrated holdings based on single macro assumptions. She told 21st Century Business Herald that she aims to buy companies trading at significantly below intrinsic value, avoiding value traps. She believes that industries currently experiencing low prosperity, such as supply-side clearing, may see leading companies achieve both market share and profit recovery.

Chen Yunzhong, head of GF Fund’s Strategic Emerging Strategy Team, emphasizes flexible allocation between traditional growth tracks and emerging growth tracks. He states that the market opportunities in 2026 are more abundant than last year, with investment opportunities in growth sectors and bottom-up reversals, but style switching and sector rotation are inevitable.

Lei Zhiyong, director of Morgan Stanley Fund’s Equity Investment Department, recently stated that AI remains the main investment theme in 2026, with AI applications expected to enter a valuation upcycle, making 2026 potentially the year of AI application explosion. Under policy and engineering talent dividends, high-end manufacturing industries such as aerospace, nuclear power, wind power, and energy storage are expected to continue thriving, with Chinese companies upgrading and expanding overseas, and sectors like military industry, commercial aerospace, nuclear power, wind power, and energy storage likely producing global leaders.

Notably, Li Yongxing, who moved from Yongying Fund to Su Xin Fund in 2025 and is now deputy general manager, manages two funds and has a third in subscription. During his time at Yongying, three of his funds with over three years of management experienced losses exceeding 10%.

Additionally, Ruiyuan Fund, which previously had only five public funds, launched a new Ruiyuan Research Selection Balanced Three-Year Holding fund in early January, managed by Dong Chunfeng, Qin Wei, and Wu Fei. In February, Ruiyuan announced a capital increase involving five employees, including Dong Chunfeng and Qin Wei, who invested 700,000 and 200,000 yuan respectively by the end of 2025; Wu Fei had previously invested 2.5 million yuan.

Looking at 2026, interviews with multiple fund managers reveal that despite differing views on market rhythm and niche sectors, several common judgments are emerging.

Consensus 1: Macroeconomic environment is becoming more friendly, with focus on supply-side clearing

Many managers mention that 2026 may see an important macro turning point.

Zhang Jiansheng, manager of Bodao Shengxiang Quality Growth Fund, states that as the opening year of the “14th Five-Year Plan,” macro policies are expected to remain positive, and corporate profits will be recovering. He further predicts that 2026 will likely witness a key macro inflection point: corporate profits bottoming out and CPI turning positive simultaneously, suggesting the worst phase of real estate’s drag on consumer and pro-cyclical sectors may be ending.

Li Wenbin of Yongying Fund echoes this view, citing macro environment friendliness, ample liquidity, and continuous inflow of incremental funds as core supports.

In consumer and traditional cycle sectors, supply-side clearing remains a key logic.

Lili Liu of Fuguo Fund believes that after 2025’s structural market, the market share of TMT and new energy sectors has reached relatively high levels in overall market value and public fund holdings. Opportunities should be sought in relatively undervalued sectors. She sees industries like real estate, building materials, cement, and chemicals, which have experienced long downturns, as benefiting from supply-side clearing, with clearer competitive landscapes expected.

Zhao Wen of Caitong Asset Management highlights five directions: 1) globally competitive consumer export companies with product innovation, cost leadership, and brand evolution; 2) niche sectors like trendy toys and pet products under “emotional economy”; 3) gaming industry with strong product cycles; 4) logistics leaders benefiting from accelerated e-commerce in emerging markets and industry consolidation domestically; 5) consumer dividend assets with stable cash flows and resilience under domestic demand recovery.

Kuang Heng of Caitong Fund suggests focusing on companies with high earnings resilience and profitability under policies promoting consumption.

Consensus 2: Technology growth remains the main theme, but internal structure varies

Most fund managers agree that “new quality productivity” or “tech growth” remains the main market theme, but focus areas differ.

Shen Ruoyu of Huatai ESG Sustainable Growth Stock Fund believes 2026 will revolve around four main lines: 1) AI and related tech, especially new computing tech and supply-demand tightness in storage and optical communications; 2) pro-cyclical sectors like chemicals; 3) equipment capex recovery, focusing on high-end semiconductor equipment, lasers, machinery; 4) exports, with resilient demand from Europe and America.

Zhang Jiansheng notes that the key variables are North American AI capital expenditure and the timing of China’s real estate and consumption bottoming out. He recommends focusing on fundamental sectors like optical interconnects and storage.

Du Houliang of China Europe Fund views Hong Kong tech stocks, noting that Hang Seng Tech’s valuation is attractive because domestic internet giants remain potential AI players, and more hardware companies involved in global computing are listed there, attracting foreign investment. He counters concerns that “AI agents will weaken traditional internet platform value,” emphasizing that platforms retain entry advantages and user-generated content capabilities, maintaining competitiveness in the era of large models.

Wang Haobing of Caitong Fund adopts a cautious stance on tech investments, noting that many segments have reached high profit levels after recent cycles, with some profit margins implying optimistic long-term assumptions. He advocates for structural selection—maintaining some allocations to capture technological iteration opportunities while being cautious about overextended profits and valuations.

Consensus 3: Geopolitical conflicts increase uncertainty, resource commodities’ defensive value stands out

Many managers incorporate geopolitical considerations into their analysis, emphasizing resource sectors.

Ye Peipei of China Europe Fund highlights “stagflation expectations” amid geopolitical conflicts. She believes resource commodities like oil, gas, aluminum, coal chemicals, and strategic resources with “geopolitical premiums” have “antifragile” traits in uncertain environments. Gold’s long-term logic remains stable; with high oil prices and sluggish economic outlook, gold may enter a stagnation phase, but opportunities exist.

Zhang Jiansheng also notes that geopolitical tensions increase supply chain friction and global re-inflation risks, suggesting attention to sectors with “pricing power,” including non-ferrous metals, oil and petrochemicals, and chemicals.

Mao Ding of Caitong adds that the global macro backdrop in 2026 will be characterized by monetary and fiscal easing in the US and China. Resources like non-ferrous metals, especially copper and aluminum, are viewed as “oil” in the AI era; gold benefits from geopolitical uncertainty, safe-haven demand, and central bank gold purchases. He is optimistic about the supply-side clearing and potential cyclical turning points in chemicals.

Tang Jiawei of Caitong offers more specific sector guidance: 1) non-ferrous metals like copper, aluminum, and some minor metals, driven by AI data centers and power needs, with supply-demand improvements; 2) lithium carbonate, with prices expected to rise amid energy storage demand and supply tightening; 3) chemicals benefiting from anti-inflation and environmental policies, with supply-side tightening and new demand in electronics, robotics, and silicone industries.

Despite these recurring themes, short-term market rhythm judgments vary.

Zhang Jiansheng believes external geopolitical shifts mainly affect risk appetite; the market may continue its spring rally into the late stage. If the rally ends with a correction, it could be a good window for deployment.

Liu Junwen, acting fund manager of Xinyuan Prosperity Select, warns from a valuation perspective, noting that the S&P 500 Shiller PE is near historical highs, and some hot sectors carry valuation risks. Conversely, undervalued sectors with improving fundamentals are gradually entering an upcycle.

Cheng Zhucheng of Huatai FOF analyzes style rotation, stating that “growth has outperformed value for just a year, and with current domestic and international tech trends, growth is likely to continue outperforming.”

Overall, fund managers generally see abundant structural opportunities in 2026. Technology growth is widely regarded as the main theme, but internal sector differences exist; resource sectors are favored for their “geopolitical premiums” and “upward pricing potential”; consumption and traditional cyclicals focus on supply-side clearing, overseas expansion, and sentiment-driven sectors. Risks include geopolitical uncertainties, overseas inflation trends, and market style shifts.

In summary, the “good start” of active equity new issuance in 2026 reflects both market sentiment recovery and abundant structural opportunities. In a increasingly differentiated market, the investment frameworks, research depth, and adaptability of fund managers will be key to product performance.