Money gushes into China's ChiNext as Beijing woos tech giants

SHANGHAI (Reuters) - China’s efforts to attract overseas-listed tech giants have revived long-dormant investor interest in technology shares, chipping away at the allure of blue-chips along the way.

China may allow its offshore-listed tech giants to sell a form of shares on the mainland, or China depositary receipts (CDRs), people with knowledge of the plan have said, in a move that would pit Shanghai and Shenzhen against Hong Kong in the battle to host the country’s tech giants.

Expectation of the move has already stirred investor interest, with money gushing into shares listed on the tech-heavy start-up board ChiNext Composite Index .

E Fund ChiNext ETF (159915.SZ), China’s biggest exchange-traded fund that tracks the start-up board, has seen its assets under management (AUM) jump 70 percent this year to 8.79 billion yuan ($1.39 billion).

(GRAPHIC: E Fund ChiNext ETF - reut.rs/2FhfLAg)

Its smaller rival, Hua An SZSE ChiNext 50 ETF Fund (159949.SZ), saw its size jump nearly six-fold to 1.65 billion yuan.

(GRAPHIC: Hua An SZSE ChiNext 50 ETF Net Asset History - reut.rs/2D1qOaI)

Other major ChiNext ETFs, including GF ChiNext ETF (159952.SZ) and China Southern ChiNext Index (159948.SZ), also saw heavy inflows this year.

(GRAPHIC: GF ChiNext ETF - reut.rs/2FhRMwA)

(GRAPHIC: China Southern ChiNext Index ETF - reut.rs/2Fgq3MJ)

ChiNext shares have jumped more than 12 percent over the past month, compared with a fall of over 2 percent in the blue-chip CSI300 Index .CSI300.

That is a reversal of fortune from last year, when the ChiNext tumbled 11 percent but the CSI300 surged 22 percent.

(GRAPHIC: ChiNext outperformance - reut.rs/2FiTGB2)