Yu'E Bao money market fund caps maximum limit for individual accounts

Ant Financial's cash management money market fund Yu'E Bao has cut its maximum limit for individual accounts to 100,000 yuan (US$15,012) from the previous 250,000 yuan.

Tianhong Fund Managment Co, which manages the Yu'E Bao money market fund and in which Ant Financial — Alibaba's financial arm — has a controlling 51 percent stake, will only allow a maximum of 100,000 yuan in assets for the money market fund investors, according to a statement over the weekend. 

Existing assets beyond 100,000 yuan in the Yu'E Bao accounts will not be affected as the new rule will apply to new money inflows, the company added. The move is to maintain the stable operation of the fund and to protect investors' fundamental interests.

The limit was cut as the Chinese government aimed to curb risks in the financial system. The limit was previously trimmed to 250,000 yuan from 1 million yuan in May. 

Yu'E Bao has become popular since its launch about four years ago as it's relatively easy to manage since it's directly connected with the investor's Alipay account, and the balance in the money market fund can be used to pay for online shopping orders as well as credit card bills.

As of June 30, the value of Yu'E Bao assets exceeded 1.43 trillion yuan, up from 800 billion yuan as of the end of 2016, a surge of almost 80 percent, the company said.

According to Tianhong's quarterly report, Yu'E Bao has about 325 million investors and is the biggest money market fund by asset size.