Key facts
- Lingjun Investment's offshore arm attracted at least $300 million from US and Southeast Asian investors.
- The firm is in talks for a $150 million allocation from a Southeast Asian sovereign wealth fund.
- Lingjun managed 100 billion yuan ($14.98 billion) at its peak before regulatory action.
- The firm's flagship equity fund returned over 70% last year and over 10% this year through September.
Lingjun Investment's offshore arm has attracted at least $300 million from US and Southeast Asian investors, resuming fundraising two years after facing trading restrictions by Chinese regulators. The Beijing-based quant fund's assets dropped to around 50 billion yuan ($7.49 billion) after stock exchanges in Shanghai and Shenzhen barred it from trading for three days in early 2024 for breaking rules. This action followed a broader regulatory crackdown on quantitative funds, which authorities blamed for exacerbating a market selloff. Lingjun Capital, the firm's Hong Kong unit, secured the funds from a US institutional investor and several Southeast Asian clients. Chairwoman Cai Meijie told Reuters the firm is also in advanced talks for a $150 million allocation from a Southeast Asian sovereign wealth fund and is marketing its strategies to investors in the Middle East. Cai noted that the success of AI startup DeepSeek has improved perceptions of Chinese quant funds. Lingjun managed 100 billion yuan ($14.98 billion) at its peak before the crackdown. The firm has since doubled its risk-management team and embedded risk checks into trading systems. Its flagship equity fund became one of China's top-performing hedge funds last year, delivering a return of over 70%, and gained more than 10% in the first nine months of this year.