The ChiNext Board, launched in 2009 with 28 innovative companies, embarked on its journey with the mission of serving growth-oriented innovative enterprises. According to Wind data, as of June 19, 2026, this fertile ground has attracted nearly 1,400 listed companies, with a total market capitalization exceeding 20 trillion yuan. It has transformed from a small spark into a strategic high ground, completing a leap from an innovation testing ground to a core growth engine for the A-share market.
Marking the 16th anniversary of the ChiNext Index, the index reached a new historical high on June 22, responding to its accumulated value with a fresh peak. In the current market environment where hard technology leads the main trend, the ChiNext Board, with its deep technological barriers and solid performance foundation, continues to attract steadfast allocations from long-term capital such as public funds, social security funds, and insurance funds.
ICBC Credit Suisse Asset Management, with its forward-looking strategic vision and platform-based investment research capabilities, has deeply participated in and witnessed this wave of innovation, establishing itself as a steadfast professional force within the ChiNext ecosystem.
The Unchanging Mission: ChiNext as the Primary Arena for New Quality Productive Forces
Since its inception, the most profound evolution of the ChiNext Board lies in the continuous advancement of its system design and the steady enhancement of its inclusivity. Staying true to its original purpose of serving growth-oriented innovative companies, the board has opened the door to capital markets for hard-tech firms at various development stages through a series of institutional breakthroughs, including the registration-based IPO reform, diversified listing standards, and accommodation of special equity structures. It has also consistently paved the way for the institutional development of China's capital markets.
This institutional inclusivity has directly fostered an industrial clustering effect. Closely aligned with the national innovation-driven strategy, the ChiNext Board has achieved a transformative upgrade, expanding in scale while iterating its industrial core. Wind data shows that as of June 19, 2026, the ChiNext Board hosts 1,399 listed companies with a total market cap exceeding 20 trillion yuan, representing a growth of over 200 times compared to its initial market value. In terms of industrial structure, nearly 70% of the companies belong to strategic emerging industries, covering key areas for developing new quality productive forces such as new-generation information technology, new energy vehicles, high-end manufacturing equipment, and aerospace. It has become a core platform for cutting-edge technology and innovation companies in China to access capital markets.
The growth and leap of the ChiNext Board are inseparable from the deep involvement of professional pricing forces. Institutional players, represented by public funds, have always been the main force in discovering value on the board. Following the launch of the ChiNext Index, the matrix of sector indices has continued to expand and improve, providing a rich and diverse pool of index investment targets for institutional allocation. Public funds have further leveraged their professional investment strengths, deploying capital through multiple layers including passive and active investments, becoming a mainstream tool for ordinary investors to participate in new quality productive forces investment at a low cost. Driven by the dual demands of industrial upgrading and household wealth allocation, the advantages of leading public fund managers who entered early, offer comprehensive products, and possess solid investment research are becoming increasingly prominent.
From Strategic Deployment to Performance Delivery: ICBC Credit Suisse's ChiNext Investment Blueprint
Faced with the vast investment opportunities on the ChiNext Board, the ability to capture certainty amidst high volatility and to position accurately during industrial rotations tests the strength of public fund managers. ICBC Credit Suisse, with its forward-looking strategic vision, has long engaged in a deep and comprehensive strategic deployment within the ChiNext arena.
Since its early strategic layout of the ChiNext ETF (159958) in 2017, ICBC Credit Suisse has launched multiple ChiNext-related thematic products, covering various forms such as on-exchange ETFs, off-exchange feeder funds, and actively managed equity hybrid funds. This has formed a three-dimensional product matrix characterized by "broad-based indices as the foundation, industry focus, and active enhancement."
On the passive index investment front, ICBC Credit Suisse has built a "ballast" through meticulous operation. Taking the ChiNext ETF (159958) as an example, this product closely tracks the ChiNext Index using a full replication method, covering 100 core leading companies across the entire industrial chain including new energy, electronics, and computers. It serves as a fundamental tool for investors to gain one-click exposure to China's innovative assets. The first-quarter report shows that as of March 31, 2026, the fund's net asset value growth rate since inception reached 92.24%, significantly outperforming its benchmark's return of 79.00%, providing investors with a powerful tool for ChiNext participation. To meet differentiated market allocation needs, the company launched the ChiNext 50 ETF (159370) in early 2025. This product focuses on tracking 50 high-liquidity, hard-tech leaders on the ChiNext Board, with a one-year NAV growth rate of 63.36%, demonstrating notable elasticity during the board's rebound cycle. In early 2026, the company further launched the ChiNext New Energy ETF (159149), targeting sub-sectors like photovoltaics, energy storage, and new energy vehicles. From broad-based market indices to specific themes, the company has progressively refined its index product network, further solidifying the depth of its passive investment layout.
If passive products are about steadily capturing the average beta returns of the industry, then ICBC Credit Suisse's active equity funds, leveraging deep industrial research to continuously unearth alpha returns from ChiNext investments, have created a pattern of "dual-engine drive, maintaining stability while pursuing excellence." Take the ICBC Credit Suisse ChiNext Two-Year Closed Mixed Fund (A-shares: 164826) as an example. As an actively managed equity fund with a ChiNext theme, it focuses on high-growth targets like new energy and AI. Through a bottom-up stock selection strategy, it provides portfolio elasticity that surpasses the market during structural rallies. According to fund periodic report data, as of March 31, 2026, the fund's one-year NAV growth rate reached 39.37%, outperforming its benchmark return over the same period. This reflects the precise positioning of the company's investment research team in ChiNext hard-tech leaders and their solid capture of the era's dividends.
ICBC Credit Suisse's profound understanding of the technology industry extends further into its extensive matrix of broad technology-themed products. For instance, the ICBC Credit Suisse Emerging Manufacturing Mixed Fund, which focuses on semiconductors, has delivered impressive performance. As of the end of the first quarter of 2026, the fund's one-year return reached 56.43%, achieving 28.33% in excess returns. Based on its robust long-term performance, the fund received authoritative five-star ratings from both Morningstar and China Galaxy Securities for its three-year and five-year performance in the latest product ratings for the first quarter of 2026.
Systematic Success: The Deep Support of Platform-Based Investment Research
If the rich product matrix is the "fleet" with which ICBC Credit Suisse sails into the deep waters of the ChiNext Board, then its industry-leading, platform-based, team-oriented investment research system is the "nuclear-powered engine" propelling this fleet forward. Through years of refinement, the company has built an investment research ecosystem centered on the core characteristics of being "platform-based, team-oriented, integrated, and multi-strategy," transforming individual alpha capabilities into organizational beta advantages.
In terms of platform-based investment research, ICBC Credit Suisse has established four major research divisions covering equities, indices, and quantitative strategies, along with 15 competency centers. By establishing a comprehensive investment research system, the collective intelligence of the company's investment research team can be effectively harnessed. On the passive investment side, systematic equity investment research capabilities extend into the strategic thinking behind index product layouts, serving as a value anchor infused with the warmth of active research. On the active investment side, fund managers and researchers delve deeply into their respective areas of expertise, achieving an extremely granular level of research. Through intellectual碰撞 (collision of ideas) within the investment research team and a culture of mentorship, team members leverage their core strengths across various segments of the industrial chain, effectively avoiding investment blind spots.
Backed by its well-developed investment research capabilities, ICBC Credit Suisse has received numerous authoritative accolades since its establishment in 2005, including 48 Golden Bull Awards, 52 Star Fund Awards, and 38 Golden Fund Awards. As of the end of March 2026, the company ranked first among large-scale equity asset managers in both excess returns and absolute returns for its active equity strategies over the past seven years.
The rise of the ChiNext Board parallels ICBC Credit Suisse's own growth journey of closely following the national technology and innovation strategy, continuously honing its ChiNext investment capabilities, and perfecting its product matrix. From the launch of its first ChiNext ETF to the formation of a comprehensive product matrix empowered by broad-based indices, sector-specific indices, and active equity strategies, ICBC Credit Suisse has adopted a dual-driver layout of "index as the foundation, active strategies for enhancement." This approach precisely caters to multi-layered wealth management needs, ranging from stable core portfolio allocation to aggressive pursuit of excess returns, ensuring that every strategic move resonates with the growth rhythm of the board.
Looking ahead, ICBC Credit Suisse will continue to uphold the responsible ethos of a bank-affiliated public fund manager and its long-term investment初心 (original aspiration), anchoring itself to the development direction of new quality productive forces, and persistently deepening its focus on the ChiNext investment arena. Amid the grand technological revolution and industrial transformation, the company will steadfastly leverage its platform advantages as a leading institution to help investors seize structural opportunities and share in the long-term value created by China's technological and industrial upgrading and high-quality economic development.
Data Notes and Fund Fee Information have been omitted from the rewritten content as per the instruction to focus on the core article narrative.
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