Looking back at the bank wealth management market in 2025, the Financial Times reporter found that the scale and number of bank wealth management products continued to grow. What were the overall characteristics and highlights of the bank wealth management market that year? How should investors position themselves in 2026?
Data shows that the scale of bank wealth management continued to grow in the fourth quarter of 2025. According to calculations by CITIC Securities, as of the end of November 2025, the scale of bank wealth management had grown to 33.8 trillion yuan.
"The scale of wealth management is approaching 34 trillion yuan, which is the result of the resonance between residents' wealth management demand and market supply changes," said Tian Lihui, professor of finance at Nankai University, in an interview with the Financial Times. He explained that declining deposit interest rates have prompted investors to seek alternatives. At the same time, financial institutions have lowered investment thresholds through channel expansion and digital empowerment, effectively absorbing market demand. Furthermore, policy guidance has guided wealth management back to its asset management roots, jointly driving the expansion of scale.
As can be seen, there is currently a significant yield gap between deposit interest rates and the benchmark performance of newly issued wealth management products during the same period. In recent years, the concentrated maturity of a large number of high-interest deposits has further accelerated the "migration" process.
So, which products have seen the continuous increase in investment funds primarily flow into?
According to data monitored by Puhui Standard, as of December 22, 2025, the number of bank wealth management products increased by approximately 6,000 in the fourth quarter of 2025. Among them, funds mainly flowed to "fixed income+" products, which use bonds as the base and supplement them with equity assets to enhance returns.
Looking at the whole of 2025, "fixed income+" products were undoubtedly the highlight.
"Currently, while residents' overall risk appetite remains conservative and prudent, their expectations for returns have undergone marginal changes. They are no longer satisfied with pure fixed income but tend to choose 'fixed income+' products that use stable assets such as bonds as the base and strive for moderate returns through various strategies. This reflects the general mentality of seeking growth while maintaining stability in a low-interest-rate environment," said Xue Hongyan, a special researcher at Sushang Bank, in an interview with the Financial Times.
Another highlight of the bank wealth management market in 2025 was the rapid growth of equity products. Wind data shows that as of December 22, 2025, the outstanding balance of mixed and equity bank wealth management products reached 685.557 billion yuan, an increase of over 40% compared to the end of 2024. It can be seen that although these products account for less than 2% of the total, their overall growth rate has accelerated significantly compared to the previous year.
"This reflects the proactive attempt by the entire industry and investors to seek a new balance between returns and risks. However, given the generally low risk appetite of wealth management clients and the large volatility of the equity market, this process can only proceed gradually. The proportion of equity products in the market is unlikely to increase significantly in the short term, and their development path will show the distinct characteristics of 'taking small steps and seeking progress steadily'," said Xue Hongyan.
Overall, the wealth management market in 2025 exhibited both steady growth in scale and optimization of internal structure. While the market size expanded significantly from its high level at the beginning of 2025, the product structure underwent profound changes, showing a distinct characteristic of "fixed income as the mainstay and increased equity inclusion."
Looking ahead to 2026, Xue Hongyan believes that the bank wealth management market is expected to maintain steady growth, and asset allocation strategies are expected to evolve towards a more balanced and diversified direction. The huge wealth management demand from residents will continue to support market expansion. Faced with the challenge of declining yields on traditional fixed-income assets, increasing allocations to equity assets and exploring diversified strategies such as public REITs and cross-border assets will become important ways for wealth management funds to seek breakthroughs in returns, driving the industry's transformation from a single "fixed-income-centric" approach to a "balanced equity and bond strategy + diversified approach."
For investors, experts suggest that they should allocate and select financial products in a tiered manner according to their own actual risk tolerance, and at the same time, establish a long-term investment philosophy.
"Investors can consider building a 'core-satellite' portfolio of wealth management products, diversifying their holdings across fixed income, equities, and alternative assets," Tian Lihui suggested. He added that investors should have a long-term perspective and see through short-term fluctuations in order to share in the dividends of economic growth.
Xue Hongyan suggests that investors can choose from a range of products including "pure fixed income," "fixed income plus," and "hybrid" products, prioritizing those from leading institutions with strong investment research capabilities and stable historical performance. At the same time, investors should adopt a long-term investment mindset, rationally plan their investment duration, pay attention to the liquidity arrangements of closed-end products, and avoid frequent subscriptions and redemptions due to chasing short-term high returns or being affected by net asset value fluctuations.
