(Bloomberg) — An embattled tech fund that plunged 58% in Beijing’s corporate crackdown has just roared back to life to become the biggest U.S. ETF betting on the Asian nation.
The KraneShares CSI China Internet Fund (ticker KWEB) added $181 million of new cash on Tuesday, the latest session for which data is available, taking assets to $6.2 billion. The exchange-traded fund is now larger than the long-time market leader, the $6.1 billion iShares MSCI China ETF (MCHI).
KWEB surged a record 11% in the broader tech rebound Tuesday. It was down about 1% in early trading in New York on Thursday.
The fund has been under enormous pressure alongside Chinese shares and American Depositary Receipts as authorities tightened oversight of industries including technology and education. Investors have continued to pour in cash in a wager the market fallout is over for now.
“Some investors want exposure to China’s internet sector, but they don’t want a pure ‘China play,’” said Todd Rosenbluth, head of ETF and mutual fund research at CFRA Research. “The iShares MSCI China ETF is a broader play. While some of the top constituents in both ETFs are the same, MCHI also carries China’s banks and real estate companies.”
A combination of strong results from JD.com, buyback plans by Tencent Holdings Ltd. and buying from the likes of Cathie Wood helped spur the Tuesday jump in tech shares. Stocks in the second-biggest economy are notoriously prone to violent rallies and drawdowns, and declines have since resumed.
Read more: China Tech Selloff Accelerates as Weak Earnings Spook Investors
Investors added a record $530 million to KWEB on Friday and $127 million more on Monday. The fund’s settlement cycle means data comes with a one-day lag.
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