Thousands of Wealth Products Switch Performance Benchmarks as New Disclosure Rules Take Effect

Since August, thousands of wealth management products have completed a switch in their performance benchmarks, moving away from intuitive annualized ranges such as 1.45% to 2.55% and toward formula-based benchmarks linked to market indicators including the China Bond Composite Index and LPR. One notable case is Guiyang Bank’s Shuangyin Wealth — Zhouzhoubao, which previously used a 1.50% to 2.60% benchmark and will remove its performance benchmark from September 1, according to Jiemian News. The broad shift is being driven by the Bank and Insurance Institutions Asset Management Product Information Disclosure Administration Measures, which take effect on September 1. The report said wealth managers are accelerating a move toward fixed-income-plus strategies, while returns from equity, gold and other add-on assets are less certain, making traditional numeric expected-return benchmarks less suitable. At the same time, benchmark-linked formulas are harder for ordinary investors to understand, so several wealth management firms are improving disclosure by publishing calculation formulas, adding benchmark trend charts and providing simpler explanations for complex products.