(Yicai) July 17 -- China Asset Management, the country’s second-largest public fund manager, has launched the world’s first yuan-denominated tokenized money market fund to tap into rising demand for virtual assets.

The Hong Kong branch of ChinaAMC today unveiled two new tokenized money market funds (MMFs), denominated in US dollars and Chinese yuan. MMFs are low-risk investment vehicles that pool capital to purchase short-term, high-quality debt instruments.

ChinaAMC forecasts that the global market for tokenized MMFs will exceed USD400 billion by 2030. Like traditional MMFs, these funds invest in bonds, money market instruments, and other securities. However, tokenized funds allow shares to be traded like digital currencies, enabling real-time transactions on crypto platforms.

This year’s surge in cryptocurrency adoption has prompted governments to expand approval for digital assets, including tokenized MMFs and stablecoins -- assets pegged to fiat currencies to limit volatility.

Hong Kong has moved swiftly to regulate the sector, with 11 approved trading platforms and 41 financial institutions authorized to conduct virtual asset transactions. Starting Aug. 1, the special administrative region will also begin accepting applications for stablecoin issuer licenses.

Earlier this year, after receiving regulatory approval in February, ChinaAMC launched a Hong Kong dollar-denominated digital MMF to invest in short-term deposits and high-quality money market instruments.

ChinaAMC said the three tokenized funds together offer efficient, compliant on-chain yield generation, with benefits such as enhanced value creation, greater transparency, and streamlined transaction processing.

Founded in 1998, ChinaAMC is one of China’s earliest public fund managers. As of March 31, it managed CNY2.8 trillion (USD390.1 billion) in assets, including CNY1.8 trillion in public funds -- second only to E Fund Management.

Editor: Emmi Laine