With the halo of "benchmark for core assets", the CSI A500 Index became a top player as soon as it debuted, and now the off-market investment tool has also arrived. 10 CSI A500 ETF Connect Funds, 9 CSI A500 Index Funds, and 1 CSI A500 Index Enhanced Fund will go on sale on October 25th. On August 27th, within a month of the release of the CSI 500, all 10 ETFs completed fundraising at the maximum limit (20 billion yuan each). On October 15th, 10 CSI A500 ETFs were listed, and in that week the CSI A500 became the index with the highest net inflow amount in the market, exceeding 13 billion yuan. As of October 18th, there were another 45 off-market CSI A500 index funds applying for listing, including the 10 ETF Connect Funds that had already been established. It is worth noting that among the off-market index funds, the number of funds tracking the CSI A500 will likely rank in the top three by the end of this year, alongside the SSE 300 and CSI 500. A500 Off-Market Fund Issuance The sale of A500 off-market funds provides investors who hope to share the long-term growth dividend of the Chinese economy and seek a convenient investment method with advantages such as access through third-party channels, no need to open a securities account, and the option for regular investment. Among them, ETF Connect Funds can be considered the close siblings of ETFs, with similar trends and no duplicate fees. It is worth mentioning that among the Connect Funds, the Guotai CSI A500 Connect A (022448.OF) has the largest onshore ETF size among similar funds, exceeding 10 billion yuan, thus the Connect Funds will have advantages such as lower trading costs and a more efficient arbitrage mechanism between primary and secondary markets. Additionally, the Connect Funds retain the dividend system of the CSI A500 ETFs. For example, the Nanfang CSI A500 Connect A (022434.OF) evaluates the profit distribution of the fund each month, and if it meets the conditions for distributing profits, it will arrange for profit distribution. The CSI A500 index funds issued this time also have a major feature, which is low fees. For example, the E Fund CSI A500 Index A (022459.OF) has a management fee rate of 0.15% and a custody fee rate of 0.05%, both at the lowest level in the industry, showing the full sincerity of the fund company. Furthermore, the Huashang CSI A500 Index Enhanced A (022461.OF) is the only enhanced index fund among them, led by "double doctor" fund managers. Huashang Fund is known for its "active management", and this enhanced fund has also attracted attention from investors. Why is A500 so popular? The CSI A500 index, as a new generation of broad-based index, enriches the product positioning from multiple perspectives such as ESG, industry balance, large market value, and mutual connection, combining both core assets and new quality productivity. The industry and style are more balanced, more forward-looking, focusing on growth, and is referred to as the "S&P 500 of China," in line with the current market aesthetic preferences. 1. Greater focus on new quality productivity. The CSI A500 index closely follows the national nine policies, with a high proportion of new quality productive industries, making it one of the indices that best reflects new quality productivity, reflecting further changes in the capital market structure and industrial transformation and upgrading. As of the end of September 2024, the weights of the industrial, information technology, materials, and healthcare industries were 19%, 18.5%, 12%, and 7.7% respectively, totaling over 50%, nearly 9 percentage points higher than the SSE 300. 2. More balanced style. Instead of just focusing on "large" stocks, it pays more attention to "small giants" in specific sectors, covering 91 out of 93 sub-sectors in the CSI third-level industry. The distribution of market values of constituent stocks is relatively balanced, consisting of not only 111 large-cap stocks exceeding 100 billion in market value but also 98 mid-to-small-cap stocks below 20 billion, making it a collection of "strength" and "potential". It has characteristics such as a wider sample coverage, balanced industry distribution, and large investment capacity. 3. Better performance. In an investment environment where investors increasingly focus on returns, the more advanced stock selection mechanism, concentration of core assets, and better profit levels of the CSI A500 index are also reflected in its long-term returns. Wind data shows that from September 30, 2009, to September 30, 2024, the CSI A500 index (total return) has accumulated a return of 107.6%, the only major broad-based index to double returns. China Europe Fund believes that as a heavyweight index product launched in this round of market reversal, the CSI A500 index considers core assets and industry leaders in its composition and is expected to track the development trends of A shares well. The second phase of the market rally has begun, and with the intensive launch of CSI A500 off-market index funds, it will undoubtedly help investors intelligently invest in Chinese high-quality core assets in a more convenient manner. This article is reprinted from "Wind Info", edited by GMTEight: Chen Xiaoyi.