China has formally opened its on-exchange stock-option market to foreign institutions, allowing Qualified Foreign Institutional Investors (QFIIs) to trade exchange-traded fund (ETF) options for hedging starting Oct. 9.
The Shanghai Stock Exchange (SSE) set out implementation details in a Sept. 30 notice, saying applications are being accepted immediately and usage is restricted to hedging. The China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) announced the policy in June and fixed the effective date at Oct. 9.
The move adds a long-requested risk-management tool for global asset managers with exposure to China’s A-share market, which is roughly 100 trillion yuan (about $14 trillion). Foreign participation is limited to ETF options listed on venues approved by the State Council or CSRC and must comply with exchange rules, the regulator said.
On the SSE, five ETF-option products form the initial scope: SSE 50 ETF options, CSI 300 ETF options, CSI 500 ETF options, STAR 50 ETF options, and E Fund STAR 50 ETF options. Product pages and prior listing notices for these contracts are available from the exchange.
The opening is part of a broader sequence of liberalisation measures this year. On Sept. 25, the People’s Bank of China (PBOC), CSRC and State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE) jointly announced steps to support overseas institutions’ participation in China’s onshore bond repurchase (repo) market, easing access to short-term funding and collateralised borrowing.
Connectivity programs have also expanded. Swap Connect, the link that lets offshore investors trade onshore renminbi interest-rate swaps, will raise its daily net trading quota to 45 billion yuan from 20 billion, effective Oct. 13, 2025, according to the China Foreign Exchange Trade System (CFETS). Independent media in Hong Kong and the mainland reported the same timetable.
Regulatory groundwork for today’s step was laid in 2020, when the CSRC overhauled QFII/RQFII rules, consolidated regimes and expanded the permissible investment scope (including futures and options) effective Nov. 1, 2020—with specific product access to be phased in by exchanges and regulators.
China has steadily widened derivatives access since. By mid-2025, the number of onshore futures and options available to foreign investors had risen to 91 after the commodity exchanges added 16 more QFII-eligible contracts in June—part of a push to take that number toward 100, officials said at the Lujiazui Forum.
