Why have over 30 bank wealth management products failed to sell this year?

The once-dominant fixed-income wealth management is now facing severe challenges. According to incomplete statistics, since 2026, at least 35 wealth management products from companies such as Huaxia Wealth, Pudong Bank Wealth, and Huihua Wealth have declared issuance failures due to not meeting the minimum fundraising scale, a number that far exceeds previous years during the same period. These “failed” products are highly homogeneous: they are all medium to low-risk fixed-income wealth management products, with most operating in a closed-end net asset value format. Analysts interviewed stated that this is an inevitable result of intensified homogeneous competition among fixed-income products in a low-interest-rate environment.

Decreasing Attractiveness: Lower Returns and Mismatched Terms

“The performance benchmark is around 2%, and it requires locking in for one to two years, which indeed limits its appeal to investors,” admitted a bank wealth management manager.

Zhang Jinghan, a researcher at Puyi Standard, analyzed that in the current environment of overall declining interest rates, the performance benchmarks of newly issued products have generally decreased, creating a gap with investors’ previous psychological expectations.

Data from Puyi Standard shows that in February 2026, the average performance benchmark for newly issued closed-end fixed-income products has dropped to 2.35%.

The mismatch between investors’ liquidity preferences and product terms has also led to a lack of favor for these types of products. Zhang Jinghan stated that looking at this year’s failed fundraising products, most are medium to long-term closed-end or minimum holding period fixed-income products. Against the backdrop of increased uncertainty in the stock and bond markets, investors prefer more liquid short to medium-term open-end products, showing insufficient willingness to subscribe to closed-end products with longer lock-up periods.

Homogeneous Dilemma: Huaxia Wealth Leads the Failure List

Notably, Huaxia Wealth leads the industry with 15 failed products. The continuous “abortions” of products reflect shortcomings in product design and market judgment of some wealth management companies.

Many industry insiders pointed out that some products lack significant advantages compared to similar competing products, affecting their fundraising.

A reporter’s review found that most funds are highly similar in investment scope and operational model, all primarily allocating to “bonds + interbank certificates of deposit,” lacking differentiated competitiveness, making it difficult to appeal to increasingly rational investors.

Many investors have reported to the reporter that the products recommended on various bank apps are abundant, but their investment directions are very similar, while the performance benchmarks are getting lower, with some even using complex calculation formulas that make them harder to understand.

Funding Shift: Investors Redirect to Three Types of Directions

So, where is the money going as investors shy away from fixed-income wealth management? Several bank wealth management managers revealed that, against the backdrop of reduced attractiveness of fixed-income wealth management, investors are redirecting funds to three types of investments: first, cash management products with stronger liquidity to meet daily funding needs; second, some “fixed income +” products with relatively stable returns, which moderately allocate equity assets for higher flexibility; third, some risk-tolerant investors are beginning to gradually invest in index funds and dividend products to seek asset allocation rebalancing.

Zhang Jinghan stated that in the short term, against the backdrop of declining asset yield centers and investors’ risk preferences not yet stabilizing, situations of fundraising falling short of expectations may still occur. This will also compel wealth management companies to enhance their product design capabilities and sales adaptability, driving the industry towards a transformation of “high-quality development.”

By/ Guangzhou Daily New Flower City Reporter: Lin Xiaoli

【Source: Guangzhou Daily Ocean Network】