Statement: Allocation of Renminbi Qualified Foreign Institutional Investors (RQFII) Quota to Ireland

The People’s Bank of China has today announced a quota for Ireland of 50 billion yuan under the Renminbi Qualified Foreign Institutional Investors (RQFII) scheme. This follows an Irish Government decision to engage with Chinese Authorities regarding the provision of such a quota.

This allocation will enable Irish domiciled Investment Managers to apply to invest directly in Chinese securities. Such an application is made directly with the relevant Chinese authorities. Where a jurisdiction has an RQFII quota, investment managers in that jurisdiction can apply to be granted a certain portion of that quota.

Governor Philip Lane said, “The decision by Chinese authorities to allocate an RQFII quota to Ireland will serve to further support the economic and financial linkages between Ireland and China. The engagement between the People’s Bank of China and the Central Bank as part of this initiative also represents an important step in further strengthening bilateral financial cooperation between the two jurisdictions. Initiatives such as this further global economic integration and may therefore result in potential macroeconomic gains for the jurisdictions concerned.”

Grainne McEvoy, Acting Director of Securities and Markets Supervision, said that “Investment Managers in a jurisdiction which has been granted an RQFII quota can apply to Chinese authorities for approval to invest directly in Chinese securities. This initiative will increase the range of options available to Irish domiciled Investment Managers and no doubt contribute to the furthering of supervisory cooperation between the Central Bank and the People’s Bank of China.”