(Yicai Global) July 19 -- ByteDance's Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok, denied that it has applied for a license to sell funds or carried out tests with fund companies, Shanghai Securities News reported today. 

The denial comes after a Chinafund report said yesterday that Beijing-based Douyin is preparing to sell funds and has already tested the feature with leading fund companies. Douyin is awaiting official approval before it launches the service, the report added.

Chinafund went on to say that Douyin plans to launch a service similar to Yu’e Bao, China's first internet fund, which will offer money market funds from major public fund managers. Douyin may later expand its scope to include the sale of non-MMFs, the report said.

About 50 fund companies have accounts on Douyin, but only China Europe International Business School and GF Fund Management have more than a million followers. Such accounts aim to teach investing, including financial concepts, market trends, and brand promotion.

Livestreaming has become a popular way for financial institutions to market their products and services, with trend for fund livestreaming kicking off in 2020. Ant Group's Alipay debuted its wealth management live broadcast service in May of that year, and many fund companies have followed suit.

Executives at fund companies, well-known fund managers, and internet celebrity anchors host live broadcasts. Alipay and Tiantian Fund, the largest third-party fund sales platforms, work with more than 100 businesses in the sector.

Last year, more than 140 fund companies and asset management firms with public offering qualifications held 44,665 livestream events on major platforms, including Alipay, Sina Finance, and China Merchants Bank, a 58 percent surge from the year before and attracting 3 billion viewers, according to the Huanju Data Research Institute.

Editor: Martin Kadiev